The Fight Inside
by RaidenNakamura
Summary: "No matter how much you hate me, no matter how much you piss me off, I can never stop loving you, Ichigo Kurosaki. Not even if I tried." GrimmjowxIchigo, full summary inside
1. Rescued

**AN: Okay guys, this is my first fanfiction so go a little easy on me alright? Lemme know what you guys think but no flames please. Things are definately gonna be a little OOC but hey, it happens. I'll try to stick to the characters' personalities as much as I can. I'm very open to suggestions and constructive critisism, so feel free to lay it on me. :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of the characters.**

**Warning: cursing, sex, OOC, and things of that nature**

**Summary: Ready to end his life after the death of his boyfriend, Renji Abarai, Ichigo is rescued by the one man he thought he'd never see again. His best friend of five years, Grimmjow Jeagerjaques, who'd suddenly dissappeared without a trace, returns and reveals to him a supernatural world where virtually anything is possible. Ichigo wants nothing more than to have Grimmjow back in his life, and allows his best friend to slowly heal his shattered heart, unknowingly falling for the man in the process.**

**Enjoy. :)**

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The Fight Inside

Chapter 1: Rescued

He never thought it would come to this, standing ten stories above ground, in front of a shattered window and preparing to end his own life. He felt several pairs of eyes on him, heard voices calling out to him, saying "please don't jump."

He gazed out of the shattered floor to ceiling hallway window, only barely registering the numerous police cars ten stories below him as they surrounded the hotel building. Chocolate eyes that were once full of joy were now dull and lifeless as endless tears streamed down his cheeks. He was clad in only a pair of black boxer briefs and a large white button up shirt that still smelled beautifully of his lover's scent. A painful sob tore from the orange haired man's throat as he readied himself to jump.

_There's no point in living if I can't be with him. I don't want to live with the pain of knowing he's gone. I can't believe he's dead._

Ichigo sobbed harder and his thoughts were reeling with images of beautiful crimson hair and hypnotic hazel eyes.

_Renji, why did you leave me all alone?_

The two of them had come to Osaka to spend some time alone together. Just last night, they had checked into the hotel and everything was perfect in Ichigo's mind. That was until a terrible turn of events took his Renji away from him, thus leading him to standing in front of this shattered window, preparing to jump.

*Flashback*  
Ichigo graciously stepped into the hotel room that Renji had rented for the two of them and his eyes went wide with appreciation. He had never in all his twenty years of living seen a more beautiful hotel room. The large king sized bed was elegantly westernized as well as the rest of the suite. The polished wooden dresser was certainly an appealing addition but the nearly sparkling bathroom was breath taking.

As much as Ichigo would've loved to look around, the moment he set down his luggage, he was fiercely pinned to the feather soft bed by his red haired lover. "Geez Renji, you can't even give me five minutes and you're already all over me," Ichigo giggled. His breath was stolen from him when Renji attacked his neck with aggressive bites and kisses as he ran his fingertips up and down his sides.

"I can't help it Ichi," Renji husked in between kisses. "Yer jus' too damn tempting."

Renji grabbed Ichigo's wrists and pinned them above his head, still planting kisses on the smaller man's neck. He smirked against the soft skin when he received a satisfied moan from Ichigo.

"Ahh... Renji," Ichigo husked with lust filled eyes.

Renji lifted his head and gazed deeply into sepia eyes with a wide smirk as he ground his hips forward into Ichigo's.

"Ahh!"

Renji's grin widened even further, pleased with Ichigo's reactions, as he dipped his head and captured the smaller man's lips in a passionate kiss. The two men were left breathless as their lips molded together and both hummed in satisfaction. Renji swept his tongue across Ichigo's bottom lip, silently begging for entrance. Ichigo quickly complied and parted his lips just slightly before the bigger man delved his tongue into his waiting mouth, mapping out every inch he could reach.

As their tongues danced and fought for dominance, Ichigo tried to move his arms, eager to run his hands all over the hot body above him, but whimpered when he realized he couldn't. "Renji, let me go," Ichigo wined.

"'Fraid I can't do that, Ichi'" Renji replied darkly. "Maybe if ya ask real nicely, then I'll letcha go."

Renji's devious grin and that deep voice was a huge turn on to Ichigo and it was making him painfully hard. He gazed up at his lover through half lidded eyes, craning his neck and planting kisses along Renji's jaw.

"Please, Renji-sama," Ichigo whispered into the red haired man's ear. "Please let me touch you."

"Fuck," Renji growled before releasing Ichigo who immediately threw his arms around the red haired man and smashed their lips together. Renji could tell what Ichigo wanted, he wanted it NOW, but that only made him want to tease his strawberry even more. Renji wrapped his arms around Ichigo's waist and ground their bodies together, realizing just how much he needed to feel the younger man.

The need for air finally broke the two apart and Ichigo was the one to try and undress Renji, nearly ripping the buttons off his white dress shirt. Renji took the hint and sat up, quickly removing the clothing. He then moved his hands under the hem of Ichigo's form fitting black V-neck, intentionally moving slowly and relishing in the feel of Ichigo's lean abs under his fingertips.

"God, Renji, just fuck me already!"

Renji grinned evilly. "Well how could I refuse when you beg like that?"

Renji tore the shirt from Ichigo's body, then reached for the button on his tight stone washed skinny jeans. In an instant he had it freed and Ichigo lifted his hips to assist him in removing both his boxers and jeans. Ichigo flinched slightly when his fully erect member was hit by the cool air, but it didn't matter with the way Renji was devouring him with his eyes.

"You like what you see?" Ichigo asked in a breathy tone.

"Yer damn right I do," Renji replied in the same tone as he hurriedly rid himself of his stylishly baggy jeans that had suddenly felt _a lot_tighter.

Ichigo stared slightly opened mouthed at Renji's impressive manhood and fought the urge to drool. The orange haired man nearly shook with anticipation to have that thick, hard cock pounding into him.

Suddenly Renji was looming over him and his breath caught as the larger man dragged his tongue down Ichigo's neck and chest. He moaned when Renji sucked a hardened nipple into his mouth and rolled it between his teeth before giving the other the same treatment. Renji's mouth continued to move lower, kissing and licking down Ichigo's torso until he reached a fine line of well tamed orange hair. The crimson haired man hovered over his already leaking manhood and looked Ichigo in the eyes as he engulfed it whole.

"OH GOD!" Ichigo cried as his hands threaded through red locks.

Renji's sinfully skillful tongue lavished him hungrily and Ichigo was already on the verge of release just watching that head of crimson hair bobbing in his lap. The bigger man began to suck harder, making Ichigo nearly scream in ecstasy.

Renji felt the pulse signaling Ichigo's impending release, driving him to increase his speed, determined to make the strawberry scream his name.

"Oh God! Oh GOD! OH GOD! RENJI!"

Ichigo came so hard that he began seeing stars. That was one of the best goddamn orgasms he'd ever had, but he knew that Renji was nowhere near finished with him.

Renji allowed the now flaccid member to slip past his lips, and licked the corner of his mouth where a dribble of Ichigo's seed had seeped out. Ichigo's heavy pants were the only sound that filled the room as he came down from his sudden sex high. Renji was never one to waste an opportunity and quickly fished a small bottle of lube from his pants pocket. Just as he popped open the cap, Ichigo suddenly grabbed his wrist and shook his head.

"No prep?" Renji asked with an upturned, tattooed brow.

"N-no, just... put it in me dammit!"

Renji didn't need telling twice, but he slicked a bit of the lube onto his thick member anyways, simply for the sake of not hurting his strawberry. Ichigo reached up, threading his fingers through Renji's hair, and he pulled him down for a deep kiss as the larger man positioned himself.

As their lips moved in unison, Renji slowly pushed his way forward past the tight ring of muscle at Ichigo's entrance. The smaller redhead moaned into his mouth as he pushed himself deeper into Ichigo. The orange haired man was never particularly patient, always knowing what he wanted and when he wanted it, so he thrust his hips upwards, fully sheathing Renji within himself. A stream of curses escaped the red heads lips as Ichigo moaned loudly.

"Fuck!"

"Shit!"

Both men panted heavily as Renji pulled out almost all the way before slowly thrusting back in.

"D-Don't..." Renji froze, afraid that he may have hurt Ichigo, until he heard the other man speak again. "Oh God, don't stop!"

A triumphant grin spread across Renji's face and he quickly picked up his pace, pounding into Ichigo ruthlessly.

Only a few thrusts and Ichigo felt it, Renji had struck a sensitive nerve within him that sent shivers up his spine and pleasure throughout his body. Renji had known it as well when the man under him had released a particularly loud moan. As Ichigo panted and moaned in ecstasy, Renji reached around and stroked his limp manhood back to life, then pumped it in time with his brutal thrusts. They were both getting close, the sounds of love making were becoming louder upon their approaching climax.

Renji buried himself as deep as he could go and released a loud grunt as he came hard. Ichigo soon followed and they collapsed onto the bed, breathing heavily and covered in sweat. Renji pulled out of Ichigo and rolled onto his back beside him. They lay there quietly for a few minutes trying to catch their bearings until Renji finally broke the silence.

"Shower?" he asked in a breathy tone.

"Yeah, give me a minute," Ichigo replied.

XxxxX

Ichigo exited the bathroom in a pair of black boxer briefs with one of the hotel towels draped over his shoulders and Renji soon followed in a pair of white basketball shorts as he rubbed a towel through his hair.

They both climbed into bed, getting comfortable under the blankets as Renji automatically wrapped his arms around Ichigo and pulled him close. They lay in silence for a few minutes, merely enjoying each other's company, until Renji suddenly spoke.

"I'm kinda hungry."

Ichigo nearly laughed, and gazed up at Renji with an amused gleam in his eye. "Why are you always hungry after sex?" he chuckled.

Renji smiled at Ichigo's obvious amusement. "You ask me as if I know." And with that, Renji climbed out of bed and grabbed a t-shirt and sneakers to slip on. "I'm gonna head over to the convenience store down the street," he informed as he grabbed a sweater to brace himself against the cold night air.

"Alright. Grab me some sweets, yeah?"

"Ya know I always do, Ichi," Renji replied with a smile. He grabbed his wallet and cellphone on the bedside table as he leaned over to place a sweet, lingering kiss on Ichigo's lips. "I love you, Ichi," Renji whispered.

Ichigo blushed with a sheepish grin on his face. "I love you too."

A wide smile bloomed across Renji's face and he gave Ichigo one more chaste kiss before he turned to take his leave.

"Oi! Don't take forever pineapple head!"

Renji waved a hand dismissively though he still had a smile on his face as he shut the door behind him. Ichigo sighed contentedly and tucked himself under the blankets, feeling his body sink into the soft mattress as sleep began to quickly take over. As much as he would've wanted to wait up for Renji, his body was exhausted and he was already beginning to feel sore.

Snuggling into the pillow, Ichigo allowed his eyes to fall closed as he was pulled into a deep sleep.

XxxxX

Ichigo's skin seemed to glow as the sun shone through the window, warmly beating down across his face as he began to stir in his sleep. He reached up and rubbed his eyes, then blinked a few times to adjust to the brightness of the room. After a quick stretch, he reached out to the other side of the bed only to find that it was empty.

Where was Renji?

Ichigo looked around, peered into the bathroom, but there was still no Renji. Trying not to worry himself, Ichigo quickly guessed that he'd gone down to eat breakfast. That man just couldn't get enough food. He sat up and yawned, peering over the side of the bed to find Renji's carelessly discarded white button up shirt. The corner of his mouth twitched upwards as he reached down and grasped the cloth between his fingers. For a moment he merely stared at it, reminiscing about the night before, then he lifted it to his nose, deeply breathing in the scent of his lover's cologne.

A small smile graced his lips and he slipped his arms through the sleeves, mildly surprised at how big it was on him. Sure Renji had a larger build then he did but damn. As he buttoned up the shirt, he realized that the damn thing was about mid-thigh length on him. He found the shirt to be quite comfortable, even more so with the alluring scent of it.

After spending a few minutes lost in thought, Ichigo became quite bored waiting for Renji to come back, and he looked around for something entertaining to do. Spotting a remote, he settled for watching TV and was greeted by a female in the middle of a breaking news report.

"Last night, a man was brutally attacked and killed outside of a local convenience store in Osaka."

"Oh my gosh," Ichigo muttered.

"Police are telling us that the murder was neither drug related nor a robbery, but have not yet found the reason behind it. Apparently, the murder had been carefully executed, leaving hardly any evidence to go by in order to catch the criminal. The only thing left at the scene of the crime was the victim's ID, which was intentionally placed beside the body. The Osaka Police Force has positively identified the victim as Renji Abarai."

Ichigo's eyes shot to the size of saucers, his breath stopped dead in his throat, and it felt as if his stomach had just dropped to the floor.

_W-What? Renji was... dead?_

Ichigo's body began to shake uncontrollably as he lifted both of his hands to his mouth and shook his head.

_This is impossible_, he thought, _Renji can't be dead. He can't!_

As much as he tried to deny it, tears began streaming down his cheeks and he suddenly felt like he was suffocating. He clutched a hand over his heart where it felt like someone was squeezing the life out of it and rocked himself unconsciously.

"Oh God!" he sobbed.

He had become numb to everything around him and was only painfully aware of the burning sensation on the left side of his chest. The lump in his throat was threatening to choke him and he found it nearly impossible to breath. He threaded his fingers through his hair, tightly grasping the orange locks between his fingers as he continuously rocked back and forth. His eyes were impossibly wide as endless tears spilled over his lashes, he was truly the pitiful image of someone slowly losing their sanity.

He couldn't breath. He needed air. He needed air.

He mechanically lifted himself from the bed and stumbled toward the door on the verge of hysteria. Little did he know that in his rush, he hadn't heard the rest of the news report.

"We have just been informed that another piece of evidence has been found on the body of the victim. It appears to be a letter from the murderer addressed to a Mr. Ichigo Kurosaki. As we speak, the police are searching for Mr. Kurosaki due to the fact that he may be in serious danger."

Upon exiting the room, he looked to his left to see the floor to ceiling window at the end of the empty hall. Every fumbling step towards it he took seemed to bring him closer and closer to feeling like collapsing. But he had to keep going, goddammit he couldn't breathe! Finally reaching his destination, Ichigo braced himself against the glass when a choking sob tore from his throat.

He needed air. He needed air.

Withdrawing his fist, he slammed it against the window with inhuman force, shattering the glass with one strike. He ignored the pain that bloomed across his knuckles, it was minor compared to the white hot pain in his heart.

He was gazing down at the surrounding buildings and all the pint sized people, he was so high up, when suddenly he realized something. All the pain, the suffocation, the guilt, he could end it all right now.

Another painful sob tore from his throat and he had decided. He was going to jump.

*End Flashback*

Now Ichigo could hear barely audible voices on megaphones, he was looking but not really seeing all the people staring up at him. The voice on the megaphone was becoming louder, more frantic, as Ichigo stepped out onto the ledge in front of the window. Somewhere in the forefront of his mind, he registered yet another police car pulling in front of the building. Before it even pulled to a complete stop, a flash of blue shot out of the car before a deep booming voice caught his attention.

"ICHIGO!"

The sound of his name snapped him out of his trance and he looked down to see who'd called for him. He spotted a cop with striking blue hair and large build, but he couldn't see his face from such a distance. Even so he somehow looked vaguely familiar, but he would remember someone with blue hair wouldn't he?

"DON'T MOVE ICHIGO!" the blue haired man shouted before bolting into the building.

What the hell? Even his deep baritone voice was familiar. Now Ichigo was sure he knew that man from somewhere. He was never very good with names and faces, and now underneath the unbearable pain, he was becoming irritated. Now he was beginning to cry tears of frustration along with his tears of sorrow, so much so that he didn't hear the footsteps approaching behind him.

"Ichigo."

The close proximity of the voice caused Ichigo to jump, but he made no move to face the man. "You don't have to do this," the familiar voice spoke softly. "Think about the people who love you, your family, they wouldn't want you to do this." He received no response from Ichigo and so he continued, his voice becoming even quieter. "Renji wouldn't want you to do this."

Ichigo's tear filled eyes snapped open wide and he finally turned to gape at the man who dared mention Renji's name. "H-How did you-?"

"Doesn't matter," the man interrupted.

Ichigo's eyes widened even further when he saw the man's face and finally everything began to click.

"G-Grimmjow?"

The blue haired man allowed a small smirk to pull at his lips. "Glad you remember me," he said somewhat proudly. Shortly after however, his thin blue eyebrows knitted together in a concerned look. "Now, why don't you come inside so we can talk all this out?" Grimmjow did his best to persuade Ichigo and held out his hand to the orange haired man.

_Maybe... Maybe he's right_, Ichigo thought_, Renji really _wouldn't_ want me to die like this..._"A-Alright," he muttered.

Grimmjow inwardly breathed a sigh of relief and continued to hold out his hand to the other man. Ichigo turned on his heel and lifted his hand, he hadn't realized until now just how close Grimmjow had gotten. Just as his fingertips nearly touched Grimmjow's, his foot suddenly slipped off the ledge, and the next few moments seemed to happen as if in slow motion.

Both men's eyes seemed to grow to the size of dinner plates when Ichigo's footing was lost and Ichigo's mouth fell open in a silent scream. Grimmjow felt his heart leap to his throat at that moment. Ichigo was just out of his grasp and the orange haired man still reached for him helplessly.

The bodies of all the police men and women froze in shock, their hands flying to their mouths as if to suppress their screams of terror. A set of large emerald green eyes that were normally devoid of all emotion, widened exceptionally as a pair of pale lips went slack.

"NOOO!" a green haired police woman shouted frantically.

"Ichigo!" a pink haired man yelled at the same moment.

This is it, Ichigo thought, he was going to die.

He was just about to lose hope, when suddenly he saw Grimmjow lurch forward and snatch his hand, yanking him back with such force that he went flying into the blue haired man. Grimmjow caught Ichigo by the waist as they both went toppling to the floor with a thud. The moment Grimmjow pulled the boy into the building, a hoard of nine other cops rushed in.

The blue haired cop quickly sat up with Ichigo in his lap, holding the orange haired man to his chest as if his life depended on it. Ichigo gaped astonishedly into cerulean eyes and was at a loss for words. "Grimmjow..." was all he managed.

"It's alright," the man whispered soothingly, "it's alright."

He was barely able to register a warm hand running through his hair and the distant rush of footsteps when his vision began to blur around the edges. He heard the heavy beating of Grimmjow's heart and his soothing words before his vision went completely black.

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**Yes? No? Maybe? Review and tell me watcha think!**


	2. Reunion

**Why helloooo everyone! I'm back with another chappy and I hope you all enjoy! There's gonna be some OOC in here so be warned. Onward!**

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The Fight Inside

Chapter 2: Reunion

Grimmjow stared down at the orange headed man in his arms in what could only be described as immense relief. He was also somewhat in awe, he had just saved Ichigo's life after all. The boy stared back at him with wide chocolate brown eyes and his full pink lips were parted in shock.

_Even after all these years_, Grimmjow thought, _he's still so fucking cute._

"Grimmjow..." the boy said in a near whisper.

God how Grimmjow had missed that voice. "It's alright," Grimmjow promised. "It's alright."

He absently ran a hand through unruly orange spikes as Ichigo's eyes seemed to grow heavy. Grimmjow continued to assure the boy that everything would be alright until he slumped unconsciously in his grasp. That was when he finally noticed the rush of footsteps at the other end of the hall. He scooped Ichigo bridal style in his arms and turned to face the nine other cops. The first to rush forward was a busty green haired woman who seemed to be on the verge of a panic attack.

"How is he? Is Itsygo okay?" she asked in a rush.

"He's fine Nel. He just passed out," Grimmjow replied more calmly than he felt.

Second to come forth was a slender pink haired man that looked only mildly panicked but tried to cover it with mere concern. "What happened back there?" he asked smoothly.

Grimmjow went on to explain to all of them as they headed down the stairs to the lobby that he had gotten Ichigo to change his mind about committing suicide and he'd slipped while trying to get back inside.

As they exited the building, all officers continued to ask various questions except for one. Ulquiorra walked wordlessly by Grimmjow's side as he carried the boy out to the ambulance in front of the building. Grimmjow of course found it odd that he hadn't said a damn thing but he didn't comment on it.

Upon approaching the ambulance, multiple people in uniform tried to take Ichigo from Grimmjow's arms, only for the blue haired officer to hold him tighter and tell them to fuck off 'cause he could carry him his damn self. The men quickly backed away and opened the ambulance doors, allowing Grimmjow to carry Ichigo inside. He carefully placed the orange haired man on the gurney and looked to the officers gathered outside the vehicle.

"I'm going with him to the hospital," he said so there was no room for argument. "The rest of you can head back to headquarters and I'll meet you there later."

"I'm going with you."

Grimmjow looked to Ulquiorra who was already stepping into the ambulance.

"What about the car?" Grimmjow asked.

"We travel in pairs Grimmjow, I'm sure someone else can take the car back," Ulquiorra replied in a monotone. He turned to meet a violet eye and continued tonelessly. "Nnoitra, you will take our car back to headquarters."

Nnoitra's mouth dropped open in disbelief and his eye widened. Before he could argue however, Ulquiorra pinned him with a glare that clearly said 'do it or I'll cut off your balls in your sleep and nail them to your forehead.' With that, the other officers dispersed and a male nurse shut the ambulance doors.

Grimmjow watched silently as the same nurse began to pull glass from a wound in Ichigo's hand that he hadn't noticed before. He looked up briefly to see the name tag that read 'Hanataro'.

"How are you handling this?" Ulquiorra suddenly asked.

Grimmjow sighed heavily. Of course Ulquiorra would be the one to ask him that, him being the one that has known Grimmjow longest and knowing when he was upset about something. "I'm not sure what you mean," Grimmjow replied indifferently.

Ulquiorra released a small sigh of his own. "Well," he began, "the man you've been in love with for more than four years just tried to jump out of a ten story window. You cannot honestly expect me to believe that this does not upset you."

"Damn you for being so fucking perceptive," Grimmjow grumbled.

Ulquiorra easily dismissed the insult. "You still have not answered my question. How are you handling this?"

Grimmjow stared blankly as Hanataro stitched the wounds in Ichigo's hand. "I'll deal," he replied. "For Ichigo's sake at least," he added quietly.

"Umm, excuse me," Hanataro said quietly, "do you know this patient on a personal level?"

"Well no shit," Grimmjow responded gruffly.

"Tell me how you know each other. Maybe it'll keep your mind off of things."

Grimmjow thought about this for a moment. He supposed there would be no harm done, and he defiantly needed some sort of distraction. "I met him in high school," Grimmjow began in a daze, "At first we sorta hated each other, I thought he was a jerk off n' he thought I was a pompous ass. Just after I met him I realized we were almost exactly alike and I hated him even more fer it." Grimmjow laughed at a memory. "It was only after we beat the shit out of each other that we became friends. Best friends actually.

"We had a lot in common, so everything just came easy. I'm not normally a people person, but it was different with Ichigo." Grimmjow's brow suddenly furrowed and he frowned deeply, staring at nothing in particular. "After we graduated..." he trailed off, unable to finish.

"What happened then?" Hanataro asked cautiously, now curious about the rest of the story.

Ulquiorra placed a hand on Grimmjow's shoulder, a rare show of comfort for the green eyed officer, and squeezed lightly. "My apologies, Hanataro-san, but this is a bit of a touchy subject for officer Jeagerjaques. Perhaps another time would be more appropriate," he said in his usual monotone.

"Oh! O-Of course," Hanataro stuttered.

The rest of the drive to the hospital was silent, Grimmjow was in a daze the entire time with his eyes locked on Ichigo's unconscious face.

At the hospital, Ichigo was placed in a room under close watch from doctors and nurses while Grimmjow sat in a chair at Ichigo's bedside. Ulquiorra had left almost as soon as he came in order to report back to their boss, Sosuke Aizen.

Grimmjow watched the slow rise and fall of Ichigo's chest while listening to the slow rhythm of the heart monitor. He rested his elbow on the hospital bed and placed his chin on his hand, waiting impatiently for Ichigo to awaken.

Sure some people would think he was slacking off on the job, but he was still doing a big part of his new assignment. The murder of Renji Abarai had been handed over from the normal police force of Osaka to Aizen's men due to the delicacy of the case. Aizen's special task force dealt with cases that normal police forces couldn't handle, and now Ichigo was caught in the middle of it. So now it was Grimmjow's job to keep an eye on him until he could take Ichigo to headquarters.

_It's been a long time since I've seen a case like this_, Grimmjow thought, _whoever did this, their target wasn't Renji. It's Ichigo.  
_  
The orange haired man stirred, interrupting Grimmjow's thoughts. His eyes slowly fluttered open and he stared at the white ceiling with a slight frown.

"Ichigo?" Grimmjow asked to get the boy's attention.

Ichigo suddenly bolted upright and he stared at Grimmjow with wide eyes. "It wasn't a dream," he said breathlessly.

Grimmjow slowly stood and sat at the edge of the mattress close to Ichigo. "No, Ichi," he said quietly.

The orange haired man's eyes began to water. "Renji's dead," he whispered with tears rolling down his cheeks.

The blue haired officer's heart clenched at the expression on Ichigo's face and he hung his head slightly from guilt. "I'm sorry," Grimmjow said sincerely.

Ichigo hung his head as well and his shoulders shook while he shed silent tears. Grimmjow wanted so badly to reach out and comfort him, to do anything he could to make the tears stop, but he was afraid Ichigo would shatter under his fingertips. Several minutes of silence passed before Ichigo seemed to be in control of himself and a mumble passed his lips, catching the blue haired officer's attention.

"Grimmjow." Ichigo slowly lifted his head and without warning delivered a swift slap across the face to the other man. "What the_ fuck _is wrong with you?" Ichigo shouted.

Grimmjow stared with astonished wide eyes and lifted a hand to his stinging cheek. "Ichi-"

"How could you just leave?" Ichigo interrupted.

"W-What?"

"You were my best friend! I needed you, Grimm!" New tears began forming in Ichigo's eyes and he grit his teeth as they streamed down his cheeks. "After high school, you left without a goddamn word! YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE! WHY? Why did you leave Karakura?" Grimmjow stared in shock as Ichigo grabbed the front of his uniform and tugged harshly. "Answer me goddammit!" Ichigo screamed, the tears pouring from his eyes seeming endless. "I needed you," he sobbed, "so why did you leave? YOU BASTARD!"

Grimmjow's look softened as sadness and regret made his chest tighten. He grabbed Ichigo by the shoulders and pulled him to his chest, wrapping his arms around the boy tightly. "I'm so sorry, Ichi," he said in a near whisper.

Ichigo sobbed into his chest and wrapped his arms around Grimmjow's waist. "I hate you!" he cried even as he held the larger man tighter. "I hate you!" he repeated.

Grimmjow rubbed soothing circles on Ichigo's back. "Yeah, I missed you too," he said with a small smirk.

"Why didn't you tell me? I thought something happened to you! And Nel had to be the one to fucking tell me you left!"

Grimmjow sighed sadly and rested his chin on top of Ichigo's head. "I'm sorry, Ichigo."

"NO, FUCK YOU! LET ME GO!" Ichigo screamed, trying to shove the blue haired officer away from him.

Grimmjow held the boy tighter as he tried to wriggle his way out of his grasp. Ichigo cried out in frustration and continued to thrash about until he finally gave up, slumping in Grimmjow's arms.

"God, I fucking hate you," Ichigo whispered with tears still streaming down his cheeks.

The words stung, but Grimmjow knew that Ichigo would need some time before forgiving him for what happened. Ichigo was right about him leaving without a word, but his reasons would have to be explained somewhere down the line, no matter how much he dreaded it. Grimmjow felt Ichigo wrap his arms around him and bury his face in the bigger man's chest. The blue haired officer deeply inhaled the smell of vanilla and strawberries as he let his eyes fall closed at the familiar scent.

In that moment, Grimmjow realized, that even though Ichigo was pissed to no end and he knew sometime soon all hell was going to break loose, he'd never been more happy in his life. He finally had his Ichi back. He wouldn't have to hide anything from him anymore, from now on everything would be different. He wouldn't have to wonder how Ichigo was doing, where he might be, if he ever thought of him anymore, or if he was even still alive. Ichigo cried for several more minutes after that as Grimmjow continued to sooth him.

A nurse with violet pigtails had walked in once, unnoticed by the two men, but stopped mid-step and smiled wickedly, turning back without a word. Her violet eyes gleamed with an evil amusement as she closed the door as silently as possible.

Just as Ichigo began to calm down, a distant piercing scream caused them both to jump and they both whipped their heads towards the closed door as several more screams followed.

"Shit," Grimmjow mumbled. Ichigo stared with wide horrified eyes as Grimmjow hurriedly unhooked him from the heart monitor and pulled him from the bed. "We gotta get you outta here, Ichigo," Grimmjow said in a rush as they headed towards the door.

"Wait, what's happening?" Ichigo asked as they stepped into the hall. He looked towards where all the commotion was coming from and saw several crazed looking men with guns, kicking down doors and wreaking havoc.

His eyes went impossibly wide as they locked with golden irises surrounded by pools of black. His ash white hair stuck in every direction and his amazingly pale lips stretched in an insane looking grin. "There he is!" the crazed man shouted, pointing in Ichigo's direction.

"Run!" Grimmjow yelled as he grabbed Ichigo's hand and bolted in the opposite direction of the men.

Ichigo ran as fast as he could, struggling to keep up with Grimmjow's inhuman speed. Shots began to ring out and echoed off the walls, causing Ichigo to duck his head and pick up his pace. He looked back only briefly and, if possible, his eyes widened even further. There was no way their feet were moving that fast. They were catching up quickly and with the way Grimmjow was tugging on his hand, he knew it too. Suddenly Grimmjow yanked him forward and caused Ichigo to lose his footing. Just when he began falling, Grimmjow swept Ichigo into his arms bridal style and somehow started running even faster.

Ichigo instinctively threw his arms around Grimmjow's neck and held on tightly as they took a sharp turn down another hall. He looked over Grimmjow's shoulder to see that those men were still hot on their tail and the one with the strange eyes was cackling maniacally. Ichigo whipped back around and he felt his heart skip a beat. The hall they gone down was a dead end. The only thing there was, was a floor to ceiling window looking out over the town of Osaka. But still, Grimmjow did not let up on his impossible speed.

"Grimm, it's a dead end! What are you doing!"

"Ichigo, do you trust me?" Grimmjow asked seriously.

"Y-Yes but-" Ichigo looked over and fear swallowed him whole as they neared the window at high speed. "Grimmjow, no! What the hell do you think you're doing?" Ichigo cried frantically.

"Hold on, Ichigo," Grimmjow warned.

Ichigo's breath hitched and he looked to the window that was now a mere few feet away.

"Grimm, no!"

Ichigo's grip tightened around Grimmjow and he buried his face in the man's neck. Moments later he felt a great impact as Grimmjow ducked his head and crashed through the thick glass. In that split second, Ichigo felt something warm overtake him. It felt like a blanket of protection that somehow prevented the glass shards from piercing his body. At the same moment, he felt something else pass through him. He couldn't describe it, it was like, even though he was no doubt falling to his death, he somehow felt...safe. Like he knew he would be okay. Maybe he was crazy, after all there was no way to survive this, or maybe it was because Grimmjow was there, but he wasn't afraid.

That was until he looked down. They were so high up and yet the pavement was rushing towards them so fast. Ichigo's eyes nearly bugged out of his head and he screamed as they went plummeting towards the ground.

_How could Grimmjow be so calm? _Ichigo thought frantically.

His screams seemed to only get louder as they neared the black cement. "HOLY FUCK!" Ichigo screamed right into Grimmjow's ear.

Grimmjow growled in irritation as Ichigo damn near choked the life out of him. _What a pansy_, Grimmjow thought with a smirk. _Really, he acts like he's gonna die_. The blue haired man landed solidly and the cement cracked beneath his feet, causing a cloud of smoke to erupt from the ground. He used the smoke as a diversion and bolted down the nearest ally.

"WHAT THE FUCK'S GOING ON? HOW DID YOU DO THAT? WE SHOULD BE DEAD!"

"WOULD YOU SHUT UP AND STOP SCREAMING!"

Ichigo quickly shut his mouth and scowled deeply though he still held onto Grimmjow for dear life. How was any of this even possible? Humans aren't made to move that damn fast or have a solid landing after jumping out of a fifteen story window. There's no way any of this could be real.

"Ichigo."

The orange haired man snapped out of his daze and gazed up at Grimmjow. His electric blue hair whipped through the wind violently and his piercing blue eyes were boring into Ichigo's chocolate brown ones. His perfect, soft looking lips were moving, but Ichigo didn't hear what the man was saying. It was only then that Ichigo noticed how close their faces were to each other, and he felt his cheeks heat slightly. If he were to lean closer just slightly...

"Ichigo!" The boy's eyes widened and he snapped his gaze up to cerulean orbs. Grimmjow was now scowling at him in irritation. "Did you hear a damn word I just said?"

Ichigo's blush deepened from embarrassment. "S-Sorry," he mumbled.

Grimmjow sighed. "I said, grab my walkie, hold the button on the left side, and say 'officer Jeagerjaques requesting back up.'"

Ichigo quickly grabbed the small walkie talkie strapped to Grimmjow's chest and lifted it to his lips, holding the side button. "Uh, officer Jeagerjaques requesting back up," Ichigo spoke into the device.

Only seconds later, there was a response. "Who is this?" asked a monotone voice.

"Tell him it's you, he knows who you are," Grimmjow said.

Ichigo briefly stared at Grimmjow with a questioning look before lifting the device to his lips again. "This is Ichigo Kurosaki."

There was a small pause and then the other officer became very serious. "Tell me what's happening, Ichigo."

"W-We're running down an alley trying to get away from some guys that are after me." As if on cue, a mad cackling was heard not that far away and Grimmjow cursed loudly. "They're catching up!" Ichigo said urgently into the walkie.

"Where can I find you?" the monotone voice asked.

Ichigo lifted the device to Grimmjow's lips and held the button. "Meet us at the train station," Grimmjow said. "I'll try to lose these guys."

With that, Ichigo placed the walkie back in its original spot and peeked over Grimmjow's shoulder. "Why the station?" he asked absently.

"Lots of people."

"You saw what happened at the hospital. You really think it'll matter to them how many people are there?" Ichigo pressed. "And don't say it's to hide 'cause you and I both stick out like a sore thumb."

Grimmjow growled. "Just trust me, alright?"

Ichigo huffed in exasperation as Grimmjow took random turns down several alley ways until they emerged onto a busy street. Just across the way was a busy train station and sure enough, parked out front was a cop car. A pale skinned man with ink black hair was leaning against the driver side door. Grimmjow made a mad dash across the street, ignoring the numerous cars honking at him. The raven haired officer noticed them quickly, and opened the back door to the car before hopping in the front seat.

Upon reaching the vehicle, Grimmjow quickly but carefully placed Ichigo in the back seat and slammed the door shut. Seconds later, Grimmjow was in the passenger seat and the car was pulling away from the curb. Ichigo whirled around and gazed out the back window as the gang of men emerged from the alley they had just left, the man with the pale skin leading them.

It seemed almost immediately their gazes locked and a face splitting grin stretched across the other man's face. He outstretched his arm towards Ichigo, forming a gun with his hand, and mouthed the word 'bang' as he jerked his hand back. With that, the man and his gang turned back down the alley and disappeared from sight.

Ichigo whipped his head back to face the two officers in the front with a new found fury in his eyes. "Alright, one of you better tell me what the fuck is going on, NOW," Ichigo demanded.

"We assure you, Ichigo, that everything will be explained back at headquarters," said the toneless officer.

"And who the hell are you?" Ichigo growled.

"I am officer Schiffer, you may call me Ulquiorra."

"You guys aren't normal cops are you?" Ichigo suddenly asked.

"No," Grimmjow answered. "We're a special field that deals with the supernatural."

"Supernatural? You've gotta be kidding! That shit isn't real!"

Grimmjow looked back at Ichigo with and uplifted brow. "Can you really say that after all that's happened today?"

Ichigo winced at his words and huffed in frustration. "So how the hell did I get caught up in all this?"

"Abarai's case was handed over to us. Whoever did this, they were doing it to get to you," Grimmjow responded darkly.

That statement struck something deep inside Ichigo and his head dropped like a dead weight. His face went blank and he asked in a broken tone, "So, it's my fault Renji's dead."

"No, Ichigo," Grimmjow said sternly. "These people are sick, they take innocent human lives without mercy! It's nobody's fault that they go out and kill, which is why we're gonna get the mother fuckers that did this."

Ichigo slowly lifted his head, and let the smallest of smiles pull at his lips. "Thanks, Grimm," he said quietly.

Grimmjow revealed a small smile of his own. "Everything's gonna be alright, Ichigo. I promise." The blue haired man then turned to Ulquiorra. "And you tell me I'm 'incapable of emotion'. Che, like yer one to talk," he said proudly.

"Hmm. It's too bad a sobbing redhead is what it takes for that to happen," Ulquiorra said nonchalantly.

"Screw you," Grimmjow and Ichigo said in unison.

A few silent minutes passed as Ulquiorra drove through the city of Osaka, until Ichigo's sudden comment broke the quiet.

"Grimm, that guy looked _exactly_ like me."

Ulquiorra and Grimmjow both looked at Ichigo through the rear view mirror and then at each other.

"We're not sure what to make of that, Ichi," Grimmjow finally answered.

Ichigo remained quiet and looked to be in deep thought until Grimmjow said something that caught his attention.

"There was a letter," Grimmjow began. "It was found on the body and was addressed to you... from the killer." Grimmjow said the last part carefully, knowing all this would be extremely difficult for Ichigo. The orange headed man's eyes widened and his breath stopped dead in his throat. "It's being kept at headquarters as evidence, and I know it's gonna be hard on you, but I think you need to read it. Maybe you'll notice something we didn't."

Ichigo nodded his head slowly as he felt the car roll to a stop.

"We're here," Ulquiorra announced.

* * *

**Alright, I know there was some major OOC but remember, Ichigo is in a very delicate state of mind at this point and it'll take some time for things to flow in the right direction if ya know what i mean. ;) The GrimmIchi goodness will definately take some time to develop but I think that think would progress much better that way.**

**Review!**


	3. The Elemental

The Fight Inside

Chapter 3: The Elemental

Ichigo stared out the car window in silent confusion. The place looked like nothing more than a simple office building with glass windows and a small parking lot. Somehow he had been expecting something more... grand? As the door was opened for him, he found himself not wanting to step out, suddenly realizing he was still in hospital garb. Grimmjow stared at Ichigo with a slightly upturned brow when the orange headed man didn't immediately step out the car. "Something wrong?"

"I'm not wearing clothes," Ichigo muttered.

"I have a set of clothing here for you, Ichigo," Ulquiorra jumped in, holding out a pair of blue jeans and a white form fitting shirt.

Ichigo swung his legs over the edge of the seat, setting his feet on the sidewalk. "Thanks," he said quietly.

He quickly slipped on the jeans under his hospital gown, securing the zipper and button before removing the paper thin material covering his upper body. In his haste to get dressed, he did not notice Grimmjow staring slightly open mouthed at his well-defined naked torso. The spell suddenly cast upon the blue haired officer broke as Ichigo slipped into the crisp white shirt and finally exited the police vehicle.

"Shall we?" Ulquiorra asked tonelessly as he coaxed Ichigo towards the entrance of their headquarters.

As the three men entered the building, Ichigo looked around the quiet lobby and the equally quiet people working at desks. It was then that Ichigo could no longer hold back the question that had been burning on his tongue since first setting his sights on the place. "Is this really it?" he asked incredulously.

"Naw," Grimmjow answered, "the majority of the place is underground."

Ichigo's eyes widened and his brows knitted together in a deep confusion mixed with wonder. Ulquiorra and Grimmjow wordlessly led him across the lobby to an elevator with an electronic touch pad beside it. Grimmjow pressed a number of keys and placed his hand on the pad, a red light scanned his prints, and then flashed green as the elevator doors dinged open.

_Such high security_, Ichigo thought absently as he walked through the open doors.

A thick silence blanketed the three men as they traveled to the lowest level of the building. Ichigo was starting to feel extremely embarrassed about his miniature break down at the hospital and refused to even look in Grimmjow's direction. However, that feeling was almost completely shut out by the overwhelming sense of emptiness. His boyfriend of three years had just died last night. No, was _murdered_. And he couldn't do a damn thing about it.

He blinked back the tears that threatened to spill from his eyes and grit his teeth. It was time to man up and stop acting like a little girl. After all, what would Renji say if he saw him like this? When the elevator dinged open once again, Ichigo stepped out first and quickly regretted it. The moment he set one foot on the crisp white tile floor, a loud, squealing voice made him jump back, right into Grimmjow's chest.

"Itsygooooo!"

The orange haired man's eyes widened as a blur of green rushed towards him and slammed into his body. Strong arms wrapped around his neck and nearly crushed the life out of him in his struggle to figure out what the hell was going on. It took him a second to realize that he wasn't actually being attacked, someone was just hugging the hell out of him.

"Itsygo!" the female voice cried.

Wait, Ichigo new that voice.

"N-Nel?" he asked incredulously.

The busty green haired woman finally pulled back with a beaming smile on her face, her hazel eyes glittering with happiness. "Long time, no see, Itsygo," she said cheerfully.

"Ichigo!" another voice called from behind the female officer.

The orange haired man gazed past Nel's waterfall of green hair and his eyes widened even further. "Szayel," he muttered in awe.

The pink haired officer adjusted his glasses with a wide grin on his face and opened his arms invitingly. "Well, are you just going to stand there and gape at me or are you going to come hug me?" Szayel teased.

Ichigo snapped out of his reverie and rushed over to his old friend, tossing his arms around the pink haired man's shoulders and embracing him tightly. Szayel smiled and returned the hug, patting Ichigo's back lightly.

"Hey, no high school grab ass," a teasing voice came from behind.

Ichigo turned around and his eyes met a man's chest. He looked up to see a wide, piano toothed grin and a gleaming violet eye.

"Oh, it's you," Ichigo muttered darkly, "Nnoitra."

"Well, it's nice ta see ya too, Ichigo," the tall, raven haired man replied sarcastically.

Ignoring the comment, Ichigo looked around the rest of the room, quietly observing. This place wasn't much different from where they had entered, several desks around the room with people quietly filing paperwork and others strolling around transporting papers.

Nel followed Ichigo's eyes and smiled widely. "Oh, this is just where we write our reports to our boss, Sosuke Aizen. The main room is in the back," she said, pointing to a set of double doors in the back of the room. "By the way, Ichigo," Nel continued, her voice now sullen, "I'm very sorry for your loss. We all are."

The people surrounding Ichigo all nodded in agreement and Grimmjow placed a hand on his shoulder in a comforting gesture. "We're all gonna help you through this, Ichigo," Grimmjow promised.

Ichigo's eyes were downcast and he nodded. "Thanks guys."

"Sooo," Nel cut in, attempting to lift the heavy atmosphere. "Why don't we show you the back room, Ichigo? I'll try to explain as much as I can to you about our organization."

And with that, Ichigo's old high school friends (and Ulquiorra) escorted him to the back room of the large office and when Nel swiftly opened the double doors, Ichigo's jaw nearly dropped to the floor. He stepped passed the doorway onto a dirt ground and stared wide eyed at the colossal underground dessert littered with huge boulders. The place was currently occupied by numerous people, all doing training of different sorts. The sounds of explosions filled Ichigo's ears and blasts of light momentarily blinded him, but the others around him seemed to be unperturbed by the wild atmosphere. Battle cries echoed off the walls as well as the clashing of blades. People were moving at such high speeds that Ichigo could hardly follow them with his eyes, and it was starting to make him dizzy.

"This is where we train," Nel began, "and surely by now you've realized that we all have... _special_ abilities. Aizen-sama has decided to call us Arrancar and every one of us is different. No Arrancar is the exact same as another, which is why the boss established the Espada."

Nel continued on as she led the group through the training room, acting as a tour guide for Ichigo. "The Espada are the ten strongest Arrancar and those ten are given rank by order of strength. One being the strongest and ten being the least strong."

Ichigo briefly gazed at the people training as they passed by, but he paused in his tracks when he caught sight of a huge behemoth of a man bouncing on his heels with his fists raised. The dark skinned man was gazing intently at a boulder when suddenly he threw a powerful punch and Ichigo stared wide eyed as he watched the boulder crumble into a million pieces.

_Great,_ Ichigo thought_, they've got the damn Hulk on their side_.

"That's Yammy, Decimo Espada," Grimmjow explained into his ear. "He's mainly the muscle, but I wouldn't advise tryin' to have a conversation with 'im. He may be strong, but he's the biggest dumb fuck you'll ever meet."

"Don't be so mean, Grimmy," Nel pouted, "Yammy's a nice guy. He just... needs a little help."

"Yeah, in more ways than one," Nnoitra scoffed.

Nel glared at him, but didn't comment as she continued on with the "tour". "That's Zommari," Nel said, pointing towards a bald, black male who was sitting atop a boulder and appeared to be meditating. "He's the Septima Espada."

"Yeah? And what does he do?" Ichigo asked.

"We're not quite sure," Ulquiorra answered.

"All he ever does is sit around and meditate," Szayel added.

"He's an astral projector," Nel whispered in his ear. "But shh, don't tell anyone."

"Hmm," Ichigo mumbled. He looked around curiously and paused when he saw a sleeping man, perhaps in his early thirties, slumped against another boulder. "Who's that?" Ichigo asked.

They all followed Ichigo's gaze and Nnoitra was the one to answer his question. "That's Starrk Coyote, Primero Espada."

Ichigo's brows widened in surprise and his brows furrowed_. He certainly doesn't look like the strongest_ _in here_, Ichigo thought, _what the hell is he doing sleeping?_

"He can't practice his technique here," Nel explained. "His power is lethal and he's not allowed to use it within the walls of Las Noches."

_What is Las Noches_, Ichigo wondered.

"My apologies, Las Noches is the name of the building," Nel informed.

"Oh... So what is it about his power that's so lethal?" Ichigo asked curiously.

"It's called the Kira technique. He can destroy a person from the inside out," Szayel answered. "He can crush every organ and shatter every bone in the human body without lifting a finger. A truly remarkable technique. However, I feel sorry for whoever would happen to fall victim to it."

"Has he ever used it on anybody?"

"Only once," Grimmjow cut in. "It's just a rumor, but the word is that a long time ago, some guy kidnapped and raped his little sister. Simply put, Starrk tore his ass up and the cops never got 'im for it. After all, how could they find an explanation for a completely battered body with no weapon involved?"

Ichigo's eyes shot to the size of saucers. _Holy shit_. _Alright, note to self, NEVER fuck with that guy's sister._

Ichigo heard Nel chuckle beside him and he gave her a questioning look, wondering what the hell was so funny.

"So, where are the rest of the 'Espada'?" Ichigo asked. When he received no answer, he looked up at his friends to find them all grinning widely at him.

"Yer lookin' at 'em," Nnoitra announced.

"Allow us to properly introduce ourselves as the Espada," Ulquiorra began. "I am Ulquiorra Schiffer, Quarto Espada."

"Szayel Apporo Granz, Octova Espada."

"Neliel Tu Odershvank, Tercero Espada."

"Nnoitra Jiruga, Quinto Espada."

"And Grimmjow Jeagerjaques, Sexta Espada."

Ichigo stared wide eyed at all of them, but when his gaze landed on Grimmjow, his eyes expressed a bit of hurt. Seriously, wouldn't having supernatural power be something you might want to mention to your best friend?

"You know, Ichigo," Nel started, catching the orange haired man's attention, "we haven't always been like this. Many of us are how you say... late bloomers."

"Ya know what's weird, Nel," Ichigo countered, "every time I think of a question, you answer it before I can ask. It's like you're a mind reader or something'." Nel's grin turned sly and she lifted her brows suggestively. "Oh you've gotta be kidding," Ichigo muttered.

"Believe it, Ichi," Grimmjow said as he placed a hand on the smaller man's shoulder. "She can't read everyone's thoughts though. She has to have physical contact with a person before she can hear 'em. Keeps her from goin' insane."

Nel shot him a hard glare and rolled her eyes. "Anyway, I'm surprised you figured out my power so quickly. But, I bet it'll be a lot harder to figure out everyone else's," she sang and winked at Ichigo before bounding off towards the entrance.

"Where ya goin', Neliel?" Nnoitra called after her.

"Aizen-sama wants to see me!" she shouted back.

Ichigo's molten brown eyes followed after her in curiosity and he turned to meet blood red eyes an inch from his face. An extremely unmanly scream erupted from his throat and he jumped back, losing his footing and falling right on his ass.

"Are you alright?"

Ichigo was momentarily disoriented and his brows furrowed deeply when his ears caught the female British accent.

He looked up slowly, first seeing that the girl was hovering in midair, about six inches off the ground. The girl's black and white converse were simple, a huge contrast to the striped, rainbow colored, knee high socks she wore. Only a bit of her lean, slightly tan thighs were exposed before Ichigo's eyes met a puffy green and pink tutu skirt, adorned with a white studded belt. She wore a short sleeved, V-neck Hello Kitty shirt and on her arms were colorful beaded bracelets up to her elbows.

She had to have some of the most unique hair Ichigo had ever seen. It seemed like a common emo hairstyle, the top was short and spiked while the bottom half went past her waist. The natural color of her hair seemed to be a bright hot pink, but her side swept bangs were multicolored in, what were they called, coontails? The patterns in her bangs ranged from other shades of pink to lime green, purple, yellow, and sky blue. The large red bow in her hair accented the rainbow looking effect.

Her large blood red eyes surrounded by long, thick lashes were filled with worry, the jet black tribal markings under her eyes seeming more defined, and she bit on her full bottom lip nervously. Though her style was wild and flashy, she was, Ichigo assumed, the kind of girl that straight guys would totally be fawning over. She seemed to be a common scene or raver chick.

"Oh dear, I didn't mean to frighten you."

The girl's soft British accent cut through his train of thought and he shook his head. "No, I'm fine. You just surprised me," Ichigo said as he got to his feet and dusted himself off.

The girl, who appeared to be about eighteen, hovered back down to ground level, standing at about a few inches shorter than Ichigo. "Sorry about that. I'm Kimiko by the way. Kimiko Nakamura. I'm an elemental."

"You're a what?" Ichigo asked, confused.

"She said she's mental," Nnoitra jumped in.

Kimiko turned and gave Nnoitra the most fierce death glare Ichigo had ever seen and he watched as a sudden gust of wind sent the seven foot man crashing into a boulder. He stared with wide eyes as Kimiko calmly turned back to him with a sweet smile on her face. "I'm an elemental," she repeated, "meaning the four main elements are under my complete control. Once I can master the fifth, I'm going to become an Espada," Kimiko said proudly.

"Fifth... element?"

Kimiko suppressed the urge to sigh. "You are so brand new. The fifth element is spirit."

"Oh... Well, um, I'm Ichigo. Ichigo Kurosaki."

Kimiko's brows lifted in surprise. "You're Ichigo?" Ichigo watched in confusion as Kimiko placed a hand over her mouth, her crimson eyes still wide. "Forgive me for not realizing who you were earlier," Kimiko said softly, her accent sounding thicker with nervousness. "My deepest apologies for your loss, Ichigo," she muttered as she bowed deeply.

"Thank you," Ichigo said, his voice barely audible.

Kimiko rose and offered Ichigo a small but kind smile which he barely returned.

Ichigo nearly jumped out of his skin when another person suddenly appeared beside Kimiko, though the girl seemed unfazed by his sudden presence. "'Ello there. You must be new 'round here."

The man's deep, British voice seemed to echo in Ichigo's mind as he looked the man up and down. His hair was a blackish purple with golden highlights, styled in spiky layers and the length of it was about to the middle of his back. His golden eyes were piercing and under the right was a black, flame like tattoo. His facial structure was sharp and his strong cheek bones stood out against his peach toned skin. Adorning his luscious bottom lip was a black lip ring that moved just slightly as the man smirked widely. His muscular torso was left bare under his open, long black leather coat and his blue jeans hugged his lean legs. He wore black, elbow length arm warmers and Ichigo noticed an intricate looking silver ring on the middle finger of his right hand.

Simply put, this man was drop dead sexy.

"Ichigo," Kimiko began, "this is my brother, Raiden. He's a vampire, but don't worry, he would never harm a human."

Ichigo held out his hand politely. "It's nice to meet-"

He stopped when a black finger nailed hand gracefully lifted his and the feeling of cool lips against his knuckles made him suppress a shiver. "The pleasure's all mine," Raiden replied smoothly. His eyes became red with lust as he gazed deeply into surprised, sepia brown eyes.

Ichigo was deemed speechless and he could swear he heard someone growl from behind him.

"Raiden, are you flirting?" Kimiko asked, completely astounded.

"Is there something wrong with being interested in someone as gorgeous as he?" Raiden countered, still watching Ichigo through lustful eyes.

"You idiot, his boyfriend just died!" Raiden whipped his head towards his sister whose eyes had gone impossibly wide and her hands flew over her mouth the moment she realized what she'd said. "Oh dear, I really didn't mean to say that," Kimiko said apologetically. "I'm so sorry, Ichigo!" The orange haired man remained silent, his eyes downcast and hidden by his brightly colored bangs. "See what you made me say!" Kimiko shouted, turning to rant at her brother.

Ichigo lifted his head to tell her that it was no one's fault what happened, but he paused when he noticed markings on her arm, partially hidden by the short sleeve of her shirt. "What's this?" he muttered as he reached out, suddenly drawn to the mark, and barely grazed his fingers over it.

He was about to get a better look at the mark, but stopped when he heard several people gasp and he turned to see Grimmjow, Szayel, Nnoitra, and even Ulquiorra staring at him with wide eyes. Others in the training room had stopped to watch the exchange between Raiden and Kimiko, but Ichigo noticed that they all went stiff when he touched her as well. Taking that as an extremely bad sign, Ichigo lowered his hand and turned back to face the girl. Her eyes were the size of dinner plates as she looked up at Ichigo, not really seeing. He watched several emotions flash through her unseeing eyes before she took a fumbling step back and a pair of strong arms wrapped around his shoulders, pulling him away from her.

"I don't understand, did I do something wrong?" Ichigo muttered, mostly to himself.

"It's not your fault, you didn't know," a deep baritone voice said quietly in his ear.

He watched Kimiko clasp a hand over her heart and the other hand made its way into her hair. Her body began to shake fiercely and tears welled up in her eyes as her brother lifted his hands in a gesture to calm her down.

"Didn't know what?" Ichigo asked in a near whisper.

"A witch put a curse on Kimiko a few years ago. Now whoever she touches, that person's emotions flow into her and sometimes it becomes too much to handle," Grimmjow explained.

"What happens to her?"

"It depends. Sometimes she'll cry for a few minutes and it's over. Other times... her powers can go berserk."

Ichigo sank back into Grimmjow's chest and a pang of guilt made his gut clench. He would never wish his pain upon someone else and now this sweet girl, a complete stranger, was going to suffer all because he couldn't mind personal boundaries.

"Talk to me, Kimiko. Get it all out of your system." Raiden's voice was calm, practiced, like he'd been through this routine a number of times. Kimiko uttered something that didn't quite reach Ichigo's ears, but by the way Raiden's back straightened he assumed it wasn't at all good. He watched Kimiko grip her hair tighter and she suddenly dropped to her knees, her scream of despair echoing off the walls.

Raiden whirled around, his eyes wide with fear. "Everybody get back!"

Grimmjow's grip on Ichigo tightened and the blue haired man leapt back a good hundred feet, Raiden appearing beside them as they watched the howling girl from a distance.

The ground beneath them began to tremble, and if not for the fact that Grimmjow was holding him up, Ichigo would've tumbled over from the force of it. Though there were no windows, Ichigo felt a strong wind with the force of a typhoon whipping his hair in every direction. A whirlwind of blazing red fire circled the sobbing, screaming girl and Ichigo looked over to her brother who watched with a deep pain in his golden eyes.

Raiden felt so helpless, a brother who was able to do nothing to help his little sister in times like these.

When the room began to darken, Ichigo looked up and his breath caught at the sight of thick black clouds forming over Kimiko and her whirlwind of flames. Large rocks went flying past Ichigo and into the whirling mass of fire.

But wait. There was something else. Ichigo narrowed his eyes and caught ribbons of glowing yellow within the chaotic mass of power. Grimmjow and Raiden must've seen it too because at the same moment, the words "oh my God" tumbled past their lips.

"Grimmjow," Ichigo began with uncertainty clear in his voice. "I thought she hadn't learned to use a fifth element."

"She hasn't."

The warmth of Grimmjow's body left him and he was pushed behind the yellow eyed vampire protectively as the Sexta Espada began barking orders. "Get all the Arrancar out of here! Shawlong!" In a flash, a hard faced man with a dark braid down his back stood bowed before Grimmjow. "Get Gin and Tousen down here now," he ordered.

"Yes, master," Shawlong replied and disappeared out of sight.

Within seconds, the room had been evacuated of all the lesser Arrancar and only seven of the Espada remained along with Ichigo and Raiden.

Grimmjow cautiously began his approach on Kimiko, determined to break through her deadly barrier and find a way to restrain her before all this got out of hand. That task would've been simple enough, if not for the fact that he couldn't make skin contact. As he got close enough to see Kimiko, he froze when her head snapped up and her eyes, now glowing a cold silver, shot a death glare directly into his cerulean orbs. Her now silver eyes burned with an angry fire that Grimmjow somehow knew was directed at him. The anger and hurt in her eyes... it was same way Ichigo had looked at him at the hospital.

He turned back towards Ichigo with a guilty look in his eyes, finding him peeking over Raiden's shoulder to see what was going on.

Could it be... part of the reason Ichigo was in so much pain... was because of him?

He watched Ichigo's eyes suddenly widen as he pointed behind him. "WATCH OUT, GRIMM!"

Grimmjow whirled around and just barely dodged the whip of fire that had been flying towards his head. He looked up at Kimiko with astonished wide eyes, noticing that she was now on her feet.

Did she just... _attack _him?

Kimiko made a fast swinging motion with her hand and Grimmjow had to dodge another, more fierce whip of fire.

"My, my. A feisty lil' thing ain't she?"

The unmistakable, drawling voice of Gin Ichimaru made Grimmjow turn around, finding said man taking his sweet time making his way over. Kaname Tousen walked close behind, seemingly unperturbed by the situation at hand.

"Ya go 'head an' get Ichi-berry outta 'ere, Tousen an' I got this one," Gin ordered with his usual face splitting grin.

"Right," Grimmjow replied with a bit of hesitation before he noticed Tousen stepping forward.

"Bakudo 63," he began, "Sajosabaku."

Grimmjow flashed back beside Ichigo as a set of glowing gold chains wrapped around Kimiko and rendered her helpless. Her bondage seemed to stop the chaos, but her screams still filled the ears of those around her. She dropped to her knees again, trying her damndest to break free of the chains.

Grimmjow calmly placed a hand on the small of Ichigo's back and tried to guide him towards the door, though the orange haired boy was reluctant. "Let's go, Ichigo," Grimmjow coaxed.

"Is she gonna be alright?" Ichigo asked worriedly.

"She'll be fine," Grimmjow assured as Raiden walked on Ichigo's other side.

Suddenly Grimmjow stopped in his tracks, eyes going wide and breath stopping in his throat.

He couldn't move. Why couldn't he move dammit!

"Grimm? Grimm, what's wrong? Grimm!"

Ichigo's pleas sounded distant, as if he wasn't right there in front of him. He wanted so badly to tell him everything would be alright, like he had before, than to see the undeniable fear in those deep chocolate brown eyes.

"What's happening to him?" Ichigo exclaimed, desperately tugging on Raiden's coat.

"Grimm, you're scaring Ichigo," Raiden chided in his deep British accent. His face fell when Grimmjow still didn't respond and that's when he went on high alert. "Are you alright, lad?" he asked placing a hand on the man's shoulder.

Grimmjow was still staring at Ichigo with wide cerulean eyes and he could see that his dear friend and first love was becoming more terrified by the second. "Grimm, please say something," Ichigo begged as he grasped his arms. In response, Grimmjow made a small choking noise and his face reddened all the way up to his ears and down his neck. "Oh my God, he can't breathe!" Ichigo cried frantically.

Raiden's eyes widened and he shook Grimmjow's shoulder harshly, beginning to panic. "C'mon, lad, breathe!" he shouted.

"Grimmjow!"

The other Espada rushed over once they heard the commotion, different levels of worry on all their faces. Szayel, as the doctor, was doing everything possible to get the man breathing again as Ichigo was held back by Raiden. The orange haired boy kept calling Grimmjow's name just to receive no reaction except for the deepening color of his face.

Among the chaos, Ulquiorra saw Gin and Tousen standing a safe distance from Kimiko, Tousen still summoning binding spells as the girl continued to struggle. And that's when he noticed it. Kimiko's glowing silver eyes were staring intently at Grimmjow's back from under her multicolored bangs, never breaking focus even as the numerous binding spells weighed her down. Immediately understanding what was happening, Ulquiorra flashed over to the girl and knelt in front of her, his face only a hairs breath away from hers.

"Kimiko, stop this," he ordered in his usual monotone.

The sound of Ulquiorra's voice seemed to bring her back to her senses as her eyes returned to their original color of blood red. Ulquiorra searched her deep crimson eyes for any sign of recognition, when suddenly they nearly doubled in size. "Oh God, what have I done," she whispered before collapsing into Ulquiorra's chest, unconscious.

Grimmjow gasped loudly and dropped to his knees, coughing like there was no tomorrow.

"Grimmjow!" Ichigo exclaimed as he forced his way out of Raiden's hold and knelt before his best friend. "Grimm, you okay?"

Grimmjow continued to cough and gasp, grabbing onto Ichigo's shoulders for leverage. In his desperate attempt for air, the last thing he expected was to be winded when Ichigo launched himself at him and wrapped his arms tightly around Grimmjow.

"You scared the shit outta me, dumbass," Ichigo mumbled into his neck.

"I-Ichigo," Grimmjow muttered dumbfoundedly. The way Ichigo was holding him was creating all kinds of strange feelings in his chest and his mind was running a mile a minute. It took a moment before he finally got the sense to hug Ichigo back and wrapped his strong arms around his lean form.

"If you don't mind, Ichigo," Szayel began from beside them, "I'd like to check and make sure Grimmjow's alright."

"Of course," Ichigo said as he pulled away and got to his feet. He reddened slightly when he noticed that all eyes were on him. Surely not everyone must know of his relationship with Grimmjow, they must've thought it was strange the way he threw himself on the man like that. What if they thought the two of them were lovers? Realization hit him hard, his pink tinged cheeks became a bright crimson and he lowered his head to hide his mad blush.

"You did that on purpose," Grimmjow growled low enough so only Szayel could hear.

"Well, I haven't gotten the opportunity to tease you two in years, so I took my chance," Szayel replied with a grin as he helped Grimmjow to his feet. The Sexta glowered at the pink haired man. "So, I assume you're completely fine now? No trouble breathing?" Grimmjow shook his head. "What happened to you? Do you know?" Szayel asked tentatively.

"I think it was..." Grimmjow turned around only to find that Kimiko, Gin, and Tousen were gone. Come to think of it, Ulquiorra was gone too. "Where'd they go?" Grimmjow asked to no one in particular.

They all turned to look in the direction Grimmjow was with equal confusion on their faces.

"Um, Raiden just disappeared too," came Ichigo's quiet voice, very obviously confused. Everyone then simultaneously turned to look at Ichigo who was looking around behind him as if the yellow eyed vampire would suddenly turn up again.

"He probably went to wherever they took his sister," Nnoitra informed.

"Alright, alright," Szayel sighed, "it's already been a long day and it's only three in the afternoon. I say we all go back to our quarters and get some rest."

"Sounds like a plan," came the sleepy voice of Starrk Coyote.

"Wait, where's the new kid stayin'?" asked Yammy.

"Well, duh, he's stayin' wit' Grimm," Nnoitra answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"It's settled then," Zommari intervened, "the boy will be staying with Grimmjow until Aizen-sama orders otherwise."

"Do I get a say in this at all?" Ichigo asked exasperatedly.

"No," they all said in unison.

Grimmjow watched as Ichigo crossed his arms and cocked his hip, his bottom lip jutting out slightly as he scowled deeply.

_He's so damn cute when he pouts._

XxxxX

Upon exiting the elevator on the sixth floor, Grimmjow led Ichigo down a short hallway towards a polished wooden door. The orange haired man stayed silent as Grimmjow produced a key from the pocket of his uniform and allowed him into his home.

Crossing the threshold, Ichigo took a moment to openly gape at the interior of the house. From what Grimmjow briefly explained in the elevator, each Espada got an entire floor to themselves while the other floors were used as living quarters for lesser Arrancar as well as business purposes. Therefore, to Ichigo, Grimmjow's home seemed colossal, much too big for one person to be living in.

Passing the coat closet next to the front door, Ichigo marveled at the enormous kitchen to his right with marble counters and wooden cabinets. To his left was an even larger living room with crisp white carpeting and a long dark blue couch against the wall. On either side of the long couch were love seats of the same color angled towards the glass table in front of it. The flat screen TV on the opposite wall had to have been wider than the span of Ichigo's arms and while he spent time ogling it, he hardly noticed the doorway on the other side of the living room, leading to Grimmjow's study. By that door was a large window overlooking Osaka and thank Kami that Grimmjow's floor was above ground level.

He continued past the kitchen, and paused between two halls, one straight ahead and one to his right, beside the kitchen. In the hall ahead, there were two doors on either side, one of them open just a bit, revealing the blue padded floors and weights. The door on the opposite side was closed.

"What's in there?" Ichigo asked, inching just the slightest bit closer before Grimmjow stopped him abruptly.

"Don't ever go inside that room, got it?" Grimmjow commanded in a rough tone.

Ichigo didn't dare question the authorative tone Grimmjow's voice had taken on, and simply nodded dumbly. Looking to his right, there were another two doors, one at the end of the hall and another beside it on the right side.

"What's down there?" Ichigo asked, inclining his head towards the two doors.

"The one at the end is my room," Grimmjow answered. "The one next to it is the guest room. C'mon, I'll show you."

Ichigo silently followed Grimmjow down the hall and remained neutral as the guest room was presented to him. In the room was a western, king sized bed, and next to it was a small wooden dresser. On the far side of the room was a clean and polished bathroom accommodated with everything a guest would need. The room was spacious and tidy but somehow... Ichigo dreaded sleeping in this room. It wasn't the room itself that bothered him, but it was the thought of being alone in here, left with nothing but his thoughts and his fears. Of course he didn't voice this and tried his best to look grateful for Grimmjow allowing him to stay with him.

Grimmjow's room was only a bit bigger than the guest room, but much more personally accommodated. His large bed was pushed against the center of the far wall with a small lamp on the nightstand beside it. A large TV, smaller than the one in the living room, was beside the door, directly in front of the bed. Beside the TV was a large rack full of numerous DVDs and video games, and that's when Ichigo took notice of the Xbox 360 laying on the plush carpet. On the right side of the room was a small book bookshelf and Ichigo could swear that most of them were comics and manga. Deeming that theory impossible, Ichigo looked to the left side of the room where there was a rolling door closet and a door beside it that Ichigo assumed was the bathroom. The orange haired man decided that he liked this room a whole lot better than the other. It definitely had a Grimmjow feel to it and the man's unique scent lingered throughout the room.

Afterward, Grimmjow had formally showed him to the rest of the house and later announced that he needed to shower and change out of his uniform. Ichigo figured he should do the same when he realized he had nothing to change into.

"Here, you can borrow a set of PJs tonight," Grimmjow offered, holding out a folded set of clothes. "Tomorrow I'll take you to buy more clothes."

"Grimm, I can't ask you to do that," Ichigo quickly denied.

"Which is why yer not askin' and I'm offering," Grimmjow retorted dryly. Ichigo merely scowled and took the offered clothing with a muttered thanks. "If you want, I can call Shawlong and ask him to bring you a fresh pair of boxers?" Ichigo flushed slightly at the thought of a stranger bringing him underwear, but he nodded anyways because he knew he needed them. "Alright you go 'head and jump in the shower and I'll bring 'em to you in a bit."

XxxxX

Ichigo emerged from the guest bedroom, towel drying his wet mop of hair, and was suddenly hit by an amazing smell that made his mouth water and stomach grumble. That's right, he hadn't eaten anything today. His feet carried him towards the blissful smell and into the kitchen, finding Grimmjow standing over the stove with his back to Ichigo.

"What're you cooking?" he asked as he approached the now pajama clad Espada.

"Fried rice," Grimmjow answered distractedly, clearly immersed in his cooking.

Ichigo peeked over his shoulder and nearly blanched as Grimmjow stirred the rice in the pan. "Did you really need to make so much? There's enough for four in there!"

"You'll see," Grimmjow muttered, still distracted.

Ichigo sighed and resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He sat down at the island in the middle of kitchen, trying his damndest not to get lost in thought, and trilled his fingertips on the marble surface as a distraction.

About ten minutes later, Grimmjow turned off the stove and wiped his hands on a kitchen towel, glancing at the clock which read 4:45.

"And in 3...2...1."

Right on cue, Grimmjow's doorbell rang and he casually strode to the front door to answer it as Ichigo stared after him in confusion.

Without needing to look through the peep hole, Grimmjow pulled open the door and was greeted by Kimiko and Ulquiorra. Ulquiorra had also changed into his casual wear, though he was wearing jeans and a fitting shirt while Grimmjow was in sweats and a thermal shirt. His face was stoic as ever while Kimiko stood beside him, eyes downcast and having changed into skinny jeans with a long sleeved Domo-kun jacket.

"Umm...do you mind if we come in?" Kimiko asked, her voice barely audible and sounding ashamed.

"Sure, we can talk over dinner," Grimmjow replied casually. "I just happened to make enough for four," he added with a knowing smirk.


	4. Heal

The Fight Inside

Chapter 4: Heal

Kimiko stared down at her plate of fried rice sullenly. It smelled amazing and she was definitely hungry, but at the moment she could only find it in herself to pick at her food.

Ulquiorra sat beside her with a comforting hand placed on her knee under the island table. She peeked at Ichigo across the table from under her colorful bangs and sighed inwardly. The poor boy looked like he hadn't eaten all day and was forcing himself to eat slowly. She chanced a glance at Grimmjow, sitting close beside Ichigo, and found him eating as he normally would. Every few seconds though, he would peek almost unnoticeably at Ichigo, as if anticipating at any moment for him to break down. It seemed she wasn't the only one who'd noticed his emotional instability. One moment Ichigo would seem completely fine and the next he would look about ready to crawl under a rock and die.

Quickly, Kimiko's blood red eyes shot back down to her food. Ulquiorra squeezed her leg, urging her to begin the conversation, and this time she sighed audibly. "Ichigo," she began softly, "I'm so, so sorry for what happened earlier. I apologize for what I said _and_ the huge scene I caused. Grimm probably already told you about the curse that was placed on me a few years back so I hope you don't blame yourself for not knowing." Ichigo nodded quietly in response to this and Kimiko then turned her attention to Grimmjow. "I must apologize to you also, Grimm, for the whole...you know." Kimiko gestured with a hand to her throat to show what she meant.

Grimmjow regarded her calmly with his usual smirk in place and shook his head slightly. "Don't even worry 'bout it," he said around a mouthful of rice.

"Wait," Ichigo interjected quietly, "you mean that was you? But how?"

"I honestly don't know," Kimiko replied remorsefully. "So, does that mean you forgive me," she asked hopefully.

Grimmjow scoffed as if the colorful British girl just asked a completely ridiculous question. "O' course I do. Yer like my little sister, I can never stay mad at you," he said with a grin.

"Oh," she said brightly, looking extremely relieved.

Ichigo remained silent, feeling more than a little confused. Based on what he'd heard, Kimiko was acting solely based on his own emotions. So did that mean... that he wanted to hurt Grimmjow the way she had? That question had brought on several more in Ichigo's mind as Grimmjow and Kimiko continued to make conversation, the girl finally beginning to eat. Ichigo thought hard about why Kimiko may have acted out the way she did when something she had said struck him.

Kimiko hadn't been trying to kill Grimmjow earlier.

Realization dawned on him and he now knew why Kimiko had done what she did. It was because Ichigo had wanted Grimmjow to hurt the way he'd been hurting for years. He remembered feeling suffocated for months after Grimmjow had left and now it all made perfect sense. As wrong as it may be, a part of him was glad that Kimiko gave Grimmjow a small taste of the pain he'd suffered for so long.

"Why so quiet, Ulquiorra?" Grimmjow suddenly asked and both Ichigo and Kimiko turned to the man in question.

The stoic green eyed Espada stared blankly at the table, somehow his face more devoid of emotion than usual. His wide shimmering pools of emerald had now become dull and unfocused. Ichigo stared worriedly and nearly jumped out of his skin when Grimmjow and Kimiko suddenly leapt from their seats, Grimmjow racing down the hall to his room while Kimiko stood protectively by Ulquiorra.

Kimiko looked as if she wanted so badly to reach out to him, but instead she fisted her hands at her sides and bounced on her heels in anticipation. "Hurry Grimm!" she called down the hall.

"What's happening to him?" Ichigo asked, his mind finally catching up to the situation.

"He's having a vision," Kimiko answered distractedly.

"A vision? Is he psychic?" Ichigo asked with wide eyes.

Just then, Grimmjow came rushing back into the room with a pencil and paper in hand. Ichigo's question went unanswered as Grimmjow placed the paper in front of Ulquiorra and the pencil in his hand. Immediately, Ulquiorra's hand began gliding across the paper at impossible speed without him even looking at it. Ichigo stared wide eyed between Ulquiorra and the paper, too speechless to ask what was going on. Kimiko and Grimmjow seemed overly eager to know what Ulquiorra was seeing and the two leaned over his shoulders to watch everything play out.

Surprising them both, Ulquiorra's hand began moving more furiously across the paper and he started mumbling barely loud enough for the surrounding people to hear. "I see Nnoitra... He's with a man I do not recognize... This man has blonde hair...styled in a bob... He's about Ichigo's size and build... They seem to be in the human world having a casual conversation but...something's not right." Ichigo, Kimiko, and Grimmjow all unconsciously leaned towards Ulquiorra as he continued to describe what he was seeing. "Nnoitra keeps looking past the blonde... He looks...worried... This can't be right..." Ulquiorra suddenly jumped, nearly falling back in his chair before Grimmjow caught him. His emerald eyes had gone impossibly wide though they were still unfocused. "Someone fired a gun."

All eyes in the room widened even further at Ulquiorra's slightly frantic tone. Ichigo remained frozen in his seat and his eyes darted frantically between the three across the table from him.

"Humans are running all over... I've lost sight of Nnoitra." At this, Ulquiorra sounded frustrated. "The crowd is beginning to clear..." Soon after he said this, Ulquiorra's breath hitched and his entire body froze.

"What then?" Grimmjow pressed. "What happens after that, Ulquiorra?"

While Grimmjow continued to ask questions, Ichigo cautiously reached for the paper still resting under Ulquiorra's hand and pulled it slowly. On the paper was a rough but detailed sketch of a man with a wide piano key toothed grin similar to Nnoitra's and warm eyes. Ichigo guessed that Ulquiorra had been able to pull a name from his vision because below the drawing was a neat script that read, 'Shinji Hirako'.

XxxxX

Nel had just left the training grounds of Las Noches and was hurrying to the top floor of the building. She could vaguely make out Gin's thoughts from the meeting room, though it was a bit of a mess mixed with all the other thoughts she could hear. One of the things she did catch, however, was that Aizen had decided to join forces with another supernatural group. She was eager to meet them, but somewhere in the back of her mind she wondered why Aizen had summoned her instead of the Primero.

As she rode the elevator to the top floor, she tried to read more into the situation and conveniently enough, Gin's thoughts continued to speak the loudest.

'Ne~, Sosuke-san musta bumped 'is head or somethin' fer 'im ta think these idiots're gonna be any help.'

"Well, that's not very nice," Nel mumbled, though she knew that nobody was listening.

'These Vizards're only gonna bring trouble. I jus' know it.'

Just then, the elevators dinged to a halt and Nel graciously exited into the small hallway. She put on her best smile as she entered the meeting room and all eyes turned to her.

"So nice of you to join us, Neliel," Aizen spoke coolly with Gin at his side, wide grin ever present.

"Is there something you need from me, Aizen-sama?" Nel asked as she strode beside his chair, opposite of Gin.

"I called on you because this is a very important meeting and I'm afraid my dear Primero would fall asleep half way through," Aizen answered with amusement shining in his milk chocolate eyes. "I assume you know at least part of the reason you're here?"

"Yes. You've decided to join forces with the Vizards, correct?"

"Precisely. Neliel, I would like you to meet Shinji Hirako, leader of the Vizards," Aizen said as he gestured behind Nel.

She turned and politely bowed to a handsome blonde with a smile that reminded her all too much of Nnoitra. "Nice to meet you, Shinji. You can call me Nel," she beamed happily.

"Nice ta meet cha Nel. These guys are Hachi, Kensei, Love, Rose, Lisa, Mashiro, and the midget is Hiyori."

Shinji was abruptly smacked upside the head with a sandal and was sent tumbling to the ground. "Who are you calling midget, you dumbass?!" Hiyori roared with her blonde pigtails flailing. Shinji glared at the girl from his position on the floor and quickly collected himself. Normally he would've fought with the girl for at least another half hour, but this was a business meeting, so he held back. For now.

Nel fought the urge to laugh and waved animatedly at the other members of Shinji's group. She then turned to Aizen with the slightest bit of worry in her eyes. "So they're here to help with the Abarai case then." It came out as more of a statement then a question.

"Correct. I figured since our killer is after Ichigo, he may very well have been from his hometown. I thought it would only be logical to bring a group who is also from Karakura."

Just then the ground quaked madly beneath their feet and everyone in the room stumbled a bit, looking around with wide eyes. Nel's hand instantly shot out to grab hold of the table to steady herself while at the same time Aizen reached for her. She would've fell to the ground if not for the vice grip on her upper arm. A pounding headache began to form at the base of her skull when she heard the thoughts of several Arrancar becoming increasingly loud with panic.

'What the hell's goin' on?!'

'Aw fuck! Ya gotta be kiddin'! Not this again!'

'Fuck, what did I do? I didn't mean for this to happen!'

Nel's eyes became impossibly wide. That was Ichigo! What in the world was happening down there? The energy coming from the training grounds had the strength of an Espada and yet it wasn't one that she recognized. More panicked thoughts started flooding her mind that she tried to block out until one called out to her, it was Grimmjow.

'God fuckin' dammit! Nel, I know you can hear me. I dunno what's happening but Kimiko's goin' nuts again. She's in pain and pissed as all fuckin' hell! I jus' sent Shawlong but I need you ta make sure Gin n' Tousen get down here. Fuckin' hurry yer ass!'

"Gin-sama!" Nel called urgently.

"I already know," Gin said smoothly, though his constantly present grin had disappeared. "Kimi-chan mus' be at it again, ne?" Nel nodded slightly although she didn't think Gin had actually meant for her to answer. "Guess there's no helpin' it then," he sighed. Then, in the blink of an eye, there were not one, but two silver haired, fox faced men standing in the room. One seemed to be dead serious while the other was as cheeky as ever and Nel assumed the cheery one was the clone and the other was the original.

Gin turned to his double with his smile returning and placed a boney hand atop the other's head. "Ne~, keep Aizen-san company while I take care a this, alright?" The double nodded enthusiastically and dutifully stepped beside Aizen, then in a flash the original Gin was gone.

Everyone still stood in tense silence, still holding onto the table for leverage as the ground continued to shake. Nobody was quite sure what to do except stare stupidly at each other until things began to calm down. However, only minutes later the quaking came to a complete halt and all occupants of the room unconsciously looked to Aizen, as if for instruction.

Said man cleared his throat and released his iron grip on Nel's arm. "So," he began as he retook his seat, "I believe we were in the middle of introductions, yes?"

"Yeah, right," Nel answered as if nothing had happened. "So, what exactly are the Vizards? What abilities do you possess that can help us in this case?" Nel asked, her tone suddenly making her sound much older.

"Mah, always straight ta th' point ain't cha, Nel-chan?" Gin's double teased from his spot beside Aizen.

Nel ignored the silver haired man and continued to gaze at Shinji as if he was a child being pestered by his mother. "Well," the blonde man began, "we Vizards are a group of very powerful half-demons. My grandfather was the demon king and until the new one is chosen, his authority has been passed on ta me. Unfortunately, it ain't very often when a demon mates with a human so us half-demons decided ta stick together. I hate ta sound cocky but...with our demon powers combined, we're quite a force ta be reckoned with." Shinji finished with a devilish smirk and tilted his head slightly. "I understand that you Espada each possess unique abilities. So tell me, what's yours, Nel?"

"I'm a mind reader," Nel answered with a childish grin.

"Somethin' tells me there's more to it than that," Kensei commented offhandedly.

"You're right. I can't hear a person's thoughts unless I've had physical contact with that person."

"Interestin'," Shinji drawled.

"Yo!" Hiyori suddenly interrupted, though her outburst was directed at Aizen. "I hear your Primero possesses the kira technique. That true?" she asked rather rudely.

Aizen seemed unfazed by the girl's immature antics. "You've heard correctly. However, I will inform you that my dear Primero uses that technique sparingly."

"Che. How boring," Lisa scoffed.

Nel watched as a tall dark skinned man with an oddly shaped afro stepped forward, ignoring the other group members' banter. Was Love his name? "Simply for the sake of knowing just who we're alliancing ourselves with," Love began, "we'd like to ask about each Espada's ability."

"Ya know the drill, Nel-chan," Gin practically sang from behind her.

Nel sighed inwardly, having gone down this list more times than she can count. Either way, she straightened her back and lifted her chin, taking a deep breath.

"Starrk Coyote, Primera Espada: user of the Kira technique. Barragan Luisenbarn, Segundo Espada: user of mind control. Neliel Tu Oderschvank, Tercera Espada: mind reader. Ulquiorra Schiffer, Quarto Espada: psychic. Nnoitra Jiruga, Quinto Espada: werewolf. Grimmjow Jeagerjaques, Sexta Espada: superhuman. Zommari Rureaux, Septima Espada: astral projector. Szayel Aporro Granz, Octova Espada: mad genius," Nel rolled her eyes as she said this. "Aaroniero Arruruerie, Noveno Espada: shape shifter. Yammy Llargo, Decimo Espada: wielder of superhuman strength."

"Interestin'. That's a very powerful bunch ya got 'ere, Aizen-san," Shinji said.

"Although," Rose cut in, "I couldn't help but notice, you have one Espada with superhuman strength, and another labeled as superhuman. Why is that?"

"That is because my Sexta is superhuman in nearly every aspect. He possesses extremely enhanced senses as well as speed and strength. What he does not possess, however, is a superhuman mentality," Aizen replied, sipping on a cup of tea that seemed to have come out of nowhere.

At Aizen's last comment, Nel had to force herself not to burst into fits of laughter. It seemed she was the only one who just got that Aizen had indrectly called Grimmjow an idiot.

"He sounds like an intriguing one," Hachi mused. "Grimmjow was it?"

"Yes," Nel and Aizen replied in unison.

"Well," Shinji began, "I believe that, fer now, we have all the information needed ta make a final decision." The blonde Vizard took a pause, mostly for dramatic effect. "The Vizards now have an official alliance with the Arrancar," he finished with a shit eating grin.

"Excellent," Aizen replied with a small grin of his own. "Now that we've got all technicalities out of the way, I'd like to inform you that the Abarai case will be worked around the clock and it would be great if you could be on call should something happen."

"Understood," Shinji answered with a sharp nod of his head.

"Know that becoming a part of this operation will require your total dedication and that by simply coming to Las Noches, you've put your lives on the line. Can you all handle that?" The Vizards each nodded without hesitation. "Good. It will not be very often when we get to visit the human world but when we do, it is required that we all keep a low profile since our organization isn't supposed to exist. You are not to use your abilities in the human world unless absolutely necessary and, even then, if something happens, please try to keep human casualties to a minimum. You have no idea how much work it is to cover those things up. Everyone understand?" More nods from each of the Vizards. "Marvelous. I believe you all will do very well here at Las Noches," Aizen finished with a charming smile.

"What about housing arrangements?" Nel asked, though she already knew that Aizen did not plan on having them travel between Karakura and Osaka, therefore only leaving one option.

"Ah, I'm glad you asked. For the time being, until this whole matter blows over, they will be housed on the eleventh floor of Las Noches. If you would be so kind as to escort them to their barracks, it would be greatly appreciated, Neliel," Aizen said with a small but genuine smile as he rose from his seat.

"And what about the other Espada?" Nel asked as her innocent hazel eyes lifted to the face of her leader.

Aizen's smile grew as he placed an elegant hand atop Nel's head, softly stroking her sea green locks. "Do not fret, my dear Tercera. Your brothers will know of everything that's going on at the next meeting, as well as Ichigo."

"Thank you, Aizen-sama," the green haired girl beamed and bowed respectfully. She turned to leave and escort the Vizards to their temporary home, but was stopped by a hand on her shoulder. She gazed back at Aizen wide eyed and inclined her head questioningly.

"I've told you many times, Neliel, you may call me Otto-san," he said warmly. It was not an offer he'd made to any of the other Espada, but from day one, he'd had quite the soft spot for Nel seeing as she was the only female Espada, the third strongest at that. Well at least that's what he told himself. Although deep down he knew that there was just something special about her that made him look at her differently than the other Espada.

It warmed his heart when Nel sent him a beaming smile and nodded slightly. "Thank you," she said softly before she left with the Vizards following close behind.

"Ne, she's always been yer favorite 'asn't she?" Gin teased.

Aizen merely grinned as he looked back at his close friend and right hand man; or at least his clone. "Always," he murmured.

XxxxX

As the elevators dinged open on the eleventh floor of Las Noches, Neliel exited with eight Vizards following behind her. Her footsteps hardly made a sound on the grey carpeted floors and multiple attachments to her uniform jingled as she walked down the hall. She hadn't gotten the chance to change out of it but thank Kami that they only had to wear it in the human world. As she reached the front door to the suite, she reached into her pocket for the key, only just realizing that she'd have to get more copies of it for Shinji's gang.

Just as she was going to unlock the door, it swung open, revealing Nnoitra clad in a white tank top and stone washed tattered jeans. His silky black locks were tied back in a ponytail and his bangs were lazily framing his face, covering the ever present bandana over his left eye. His whole frame was littered from head to toe in splotches of paint and he wiped his cheek with the back of his hand, not realizing the small mess he was making on his face.

"Nnoi!" Nel exclaimed in surprise. "What're you doing in there?"

Nnoitra seemed surprised himself as his violet eye swept over the small group behind Nel until his gaze landed on a lithe, sexy blonde with a smile that nearly matched his. The blonde swept his eyes appreciatively over Nnoitra's frame with a lecherous grin on his face and winked seductively at him. Nnoitra smirked back and nodded his head to the blonde as he took sight of the black slacks that hugged his long, muscular legs along with the button up and tie.

Nel, having heard Nnoitra's rather loud and dirty thoughts, waved a hand in front of his face and repeated her question. "Hello? I asked what're you doing here," she said playfully.

Nnoitra blinked. "Huh? Oh. Aizen sent me n' some a the boys ta fix up some last minute things on the place after the lil' fiasco wit' Kimiko a while ago. Are these the new guys that're gonna be stayin' 'ere?"

'C'mon Nel, ain't cha gonna introduce me ta the hot blonde?'

Nel fought the urge to laugh and nodded slightly to show Nnoitra that she'd heard his silent request. "Yeah, these are the Vizards, they're going to help us with the Abarai case. And this," she said as she placed a gentle hand on Shinji's shoulder, "is Shinji Hirako, their leader."

Shinji smiled coyly and cocked a hip as he ran a hand through his soft blonde tresses. Nnoitra unconsciously licked his lips at the obvious display of confidence.

"I'll just show the others inside while you two get...better acquainted," Nel muttered, though she doubted either man was listening.

Shinji and Nnoitra hardly noticed when Nel and the other Vizards disappeared into the suite as they were too busy trying to read each other through their gazes.

"Yo, I'm Nnoitra Jiruga," the one eyed man said confidently as he held out his hand.

Shinji graciously lifted an elegant hand and placed it into Nnoitra's. "Pleasure ta meet cha," the blonde said smoothly as he grabbed the offered hand firmly.

For a long moment the two stared each other down until Nnoitra sniffed and a wide smirk graced his features. He leaned down slowly to Shinji's eye level until their lips were only inches apart and their hot breaths mingled. The slim blonde's eyes went slightly wide but he held his ground, never breaking eye contact with Nnoitra. "Ya know," the violet eyed man whispered, "I c'n smell yer lust n' desire practically rollin' off yer body."

Shinji's eyes went to the size of dinner plates and a mad blush spread across his cheeks. His jaw dropped just the slightest bit and after a long moment he shook his head in order to clear his foggy mind. "Y-ya must be the werewolf," he stuttered.

Nnoitra smirked as he released Shinji's warm hand. "Yupp, that's me," he said as he stood to his full height, "n' you smell like a half-demon."

"My friends and I 're all half-demons." Nnoitra's eyebrows lifted slightly at this. "Ya know, I hear that werewolves 're some horny bastards," the half-demon said as he inclined his head and lifted a slim brow.

Nnoitra laughed heartily at this but nodded none the less. "Very true. N' I've heard that half-demons 're amazin' in bed," Nnoitra said wickedly. He grinned lecherously and his voice dipped seductively, "Sounds like a perfect fit ta me."

"Yer jus' gonna hafta find out fer yerself ain't cha, Nnoitra," Shinji's voice lowered a good few octaves as he said the other man's name and winked. Honey eyes drifted to the set of pale lips that had been so close to his just moments before and without knowing, he began to bite on his own bottom lip.

Nnoitra's violet eye followed the movement and he found himself fighting the urge to claim those full pink lips with his. "We can get ta that a bit later. Whadya say right now I show ya 'round yer new place, ne?"

"Sounds great," Shinji said quietly with a wide, genuine smile lighting his features.

That smile stirred an unfamiliar feeling in the pit of Nnoitra's stomach and an odd sort of warmth blossomed in his chest. He was startled a bit by the two strange feelings but for now he'd ignore them, better yet forget it even happened. He placed a hand on the small of Shinji's back and led him inside the large suite he'd be staying in for the time being.

They entered to find the other Vizard gathered in the living room with Mashiro and Nel talking animatedly about the tastiest Japanese snacks you could ever find and Love speaking with Rose about the latest issue of Shounen Jump. Shinji chuckled as the group began bustling around the rather enormous suite, arguing about whether Nel should show them the kitchen or the rooms first. Eventually, Lisa managed to convince- or rather con- Nel into showing them the rooms first.

There were three large bedrooms, two of the rooms each had three beds and the last had two. It was quickly decided that the three girls would share a room while Love, Rose, and Hachi would share another. Obviously the last room would be left to Shinji and Kensei. Nnoitra wasn't quite sure why, but knowing that his new found interest would be sharing a room with Kensei sort of unsettled him. Something about the bulky, silver haired man was off and he hated the way the man gazed at Shinji when he thought nobody was looking. Call him possessive, but he didn't want anyone looking at what was soon to be his.

The kitchen was large, fairly simple, but accommodated with more than was necessary. There were polished wooden cabinets, dark marble counter tops, and a huge silver refrigerator already stocked to the brim with food. Shinji was silently grateful for the coffee machine beside the fridge because there would definitely be early mornings where he'd need the extra energy. The dining room held a large oval wooden table, lined with exactly eight chairs and decorated with a vase of flowers in the center.

Finally, after the grand tour, the group settled in the living room, either sitting on the soft, stark white couch or the equally white carpet. They all sat facing the TV fastened to the wall until Mashiro finally got the sense to turn it on, though everyone was more focused on making conversation amongst themselves.

Shinji sat at the end of the couch with Nnoitra close beside him and pretended not to notice the arm casually draped behind his shoulders but still not quite around them. The half-demon could sense that Nnoitra was treading carefully, a feat Shinji somehow knew was rare. Perhaps the werewolf had also heard the rumor about half-demons being hot tempered...

Shinji turned to Nnoitra with a sweet smile, eager to initiate conversation with the intriguing man, but paused when he noticed him glaring heatedly over the blonde's shoulder. Brows creased, Shinji turned around to find Kensei leaning against the wall and readily returning Nnoitra's glare. The half-demon turned back to Nnoi and lightly back handed him against his chest to grab his attention.

"There somethin' wrong?" Shinji asked bluntly.

Nnoitra glared for a short while longer before finally giving the blonde his full attention, regarding him with an intense violet eye. "I don' like 'im," he answered curtly.

Shinji glanced back at Kensei briefly before turning back to Nnoitra with a look of disbelief. "Kensei? Oh he's not so bad. N' ya don't even know 'im, why wouldn't ya like 'im?"

"Instinct," Nnoitra responded gruffly.

The blonde stayed silent at that. Everyone knew there was no use questioning a werewolf's instinct, it was almost always right so asking questions was just stupid. His silence didn't go unnoticed by Nnoitra and the dark haired man finally wrapped his arm around Shinji, bringing their bodies closer. The blonde was somewhat taken by surprise and flushed slightly at the sudden close proximity.

"So, Shinji," Nnoitra began in a quiet murmur, right beside the blonde's ear. "Why dontcha tell me a lil' more 'bout yerself?"

Nel watched in silent amusement from beside Nnoitra as Shinji eagerly began to spout about his life story. What surprised Nel the most was that Nnoitra looked so content with this man that he'd just barely met and actually seemed interested in knowing more about him. She'd never seen Nnoi like this with anyone else; he would normally sweet talk someone into his bed and be done with it. Nel sincerely hoped that Shinji would be something good in Nnoitra's life, the tall dark haired man definitely needed a change.

The only thing that worried her was the odd exchange between Nnoitra and the muscular, silver haired man on the other side of the room. What was his name? Oh, right. Kensei. She hadn't yet made physical contact with the man, but it didn't take a mind reader to know that the man had a thing for Shinji. Nnoitra knew it as well, his instinct told him as much, but he was not about to give up so easily, or at all for that matter. It was obvious that Shinji and Nnoitra had already hit it off really well, and Nel was determined not to let anyone mess that up, no matter what.

XxxxX

About an hour had passed and Nel was still excitedly spouting as much information as the Vizards could take about the Las Noches organization. She explained that there were very few general rules that pertained to everyone aside from keeping their secret from the humans and killing humans is strictly forbidden unless absolutely necessary. However, there were many more rules pertaining to people with different abilities. For example, Nnoitra was not allowed to phase within the walls of Las Noches, lest he tear the whole place apart. Nel also went on to explain their long time rivalry with the Gotei 13 and was surprised to find out that the Vizards shared the same opinions as they did. The room was filled with laughter when Nnoitra had made another one of his crude jokes and the Vizards came to realize that their alliance with the Arrancar was quickly starting to feel like a great friendship.

Nnoitra still had his arm wound tightly around Shinji and sometime during the conversation, the blonde had rested his head against the man's shoulder as if he had always belonged there. The dark haired man felt as if he was floating on cloud nine. It amazed him how contented he felt with having the blonde at his side, and he'd only just met him not even two hours ago.

_What the hell has this half-demon done to me, _Nnoitra briefly wondered.

His brows furrowed when he realized that Nel had become quiet and didn't make a snide comment about his reeling thoughts. He turned his head to face Nel and noticed that she seemed to be in deep concentration, as if trying to remember something.

"Yo, Nel, ya okay?" he asked gruffly.

The green haired woman started slightly, but nodded as she glanced at her watch which read 4:45. "Yeah, I'm fine. I think I should go now though," she said as she stood from her seat.

"Awww~ Nel-chan's leaving already?" Mashiro whined.

"Yes. But don't worry, I'm sure you'll see me all the time," she answered with a beaming smile.

"Yeah, I better get goin' too," Nnoitra added as he too rose from the couch. He nearly laughed out loud when he noticed Shinji pouting at the loss of contact. Now, he said nearly because at the same moment, he froze when he realized that expression once again created that odd feeling in his chest. He tried not to think about it, it would only be more for Nel to tease him about.

"You'll need this," she whispered as she slipped a pen into his hand. "Okay, well, bye everyone!" Nel waved everyone goodbye and headed for the front door. "I'll wait in the hall for you, Nnoi!" she called over her shoulder, and she was gone.

Once Nel had left, all heads turned to Nnoitra, waiting to see what he'd do next. Even Lisa had set aside her magazine and watched eagerly as Shinji rose to face Nnoitra while the other man still stared stupidly at the pen Nel had given him. The dark haired man was very well aware of all the eyes currently on him as he contemplated his next move, but like hell he gave a damn if people were watching. Nnoitra was a man of instinct, and his instinct told him he had to have Shinji by any means. Instinct also told him that he had to do something about it _now_.

Nnoitra quickly grabbed Shinji's hand and uncapped the pen Nel had given him with his teeth. "It was great meetin' ya, Shinji," he said as he began to write his number on the blonde's hand. "I live up on the fifth floor. Feel free ta come n' see me anytime, I'd like ta get to know ya better," he added with a smirk.

"Sure, maybe we can talk over dinner," Shinji suggested innocently, though he was anything but.

"I'm sure I got time," Nnoitra replied in a teasing sort of manner.

He was slightly taken by surprise when Shinji suddenly got on his toes to whisper into his ear. "I hope ya know I fully intend ta find out if that rumor 'bout werewolves is true." Nnoitra grinned widely at the hidden promise in that statement, but his smile faltered when Shinji placed a chaste kiss to his cheek. It wasn't the kiss that made him falter, it was how such a simple action affected him so much.

He brushed off the feeling once again and his signature shit eating grin returned. "Later, Shinji," he grinned. He couldn't help the slight swell of his pride when Shinji finally took notice of the other Vizards still watching and blushed madly. "Nice meetin' ya guys," he called with a two fingered salute towards the rest of the gang, and then headed to the door. He made sure to send Kensei one last fierce glare before leaving and sent a wink to Shinji.

Closing the door behind him, Nnoitra immediately spotted Nel with a devious grin on her face and fought the urge to roll his eyes. "You really like that Shinji," she said all knowingly.

"So the fuck what if I do?" Nnoitra countered with a shrug of his shoulders. "And I saw that little stunt ya pulled earlier," he added as he started towards the elevator.

"Can't say I know what you mean," Nel responded innocently as she followed.

"Oh, don' play dumb. Ya know exactly what the fuck I'm talkin' 'bout."

"I'm afraid I have no clue what you're talking about." Nel knew she was lying her ass off and had to hold a hand over her mouth to keep from snickering.

"Ya purposely touched Shinji so ya could hear what he was thinkin'! I know ya usually try ta avoid that shit so what the fuck changed?"

"What changed is that Mr. Screw-everything-that-even-breathes is finally interested in someone for more than just a good lay." Nel had said it so simply as if she hadn't just called one of her brothers a man whore. "I only did it to make sure that whatever this connection is between you two goes both ways."

The two of them reached the elevators and waited none too patiently for it to arrive. "Che. Connection? Yer fuckin' delusional," Nnoitra scoffed as he defensively crossed his arms over his chest.

"On the contrary, I believe it's _you _who's fuckin' delusional," Nel said nonchalantly as they both entered the elevator.

Nnoitora sputtered a bit at Nel's extremely rare use of profanity before he remembered to defend his argument. "The fuck makes ya think-"

"I swear, Nnoi, sometimes you forget that I can read your mind."

There was a long pause when Nnoitra realized he had nothing to say to that and he glared hard at the elevator door. Before he even thought about it, he asked, "So what's he think about me then?"

Nel's eyes widened just slightly and she lifted a slim brow. "Nnoi, you know I don't go gossiping about people's personal thoughts," she quickly responded though her voice sounded skeptical.

"I'm only askin' ya jus' this once."

Nel sighed deeply and cursed how easily persuaded she could be at times. "He's thinking along the same lines as you are. He knows he likes you but he doesn't have a clue as to why he feels so drawn to you. He wonders why it feels so natural speaking with you when you've only just met." Nel took a moment to check Nnoitra's reaction and couldn't miss the wide smile on his face. "I can see I've already said too much."

"Naw," Nnoitra shook his head as he exited the elevator on the fifth floor. "This's fuckin' perfect."

Nel stared after him with wide eyes and her mouth slightly agape. If she wasn't mistaken, Nnoi almost looked..._love-struck_. "Oh...my...God," she mumbled as the elevators closed and headed to the third floor.

_I hope I haven't made a mistake_, she thought to herself.

XxxxX

Grimmjow was at a loss of what to do as Ulquiorra finally came out of the deep trance he was in. The green eyed man had refused to reveal what it was that he had seen and instead stormed out of Grimmjow's suite with Kimiko running after him, throwing apologies over her shoulder. The blue haired man contemplated also running after the Quarto but stopped himself when he noticed Ichigo still sitting at the island table, staring at nothing in particular.

_Dammit_, Grimmjow thought to himself, _I can't leave him alone like this_.

Before he could further argue with himself, and incessant buzzing grabbed his attention. Quickly realizing it was his cellphone, he raced to his bedroom and snatched the device from his bedside table. Only briefly gazing at the caller ID, he saw that it was Nel calling and answered it gruffly as he returned to the kitchen.

"What the fuck did Ulquiorra see?" he asked without so much as a hello.

"Well, hello to you too, Grimmy," Nel responded cheerily.

"Don't beat around the fuckin' bush, tell me what he saw."

Ichigo stared wide eyed up at Grimmjow and shuddered slightly at the deep, authoritive tone that his voice had taken on.

_How the hell? I didn't even hear his damn phone ring_, Ichigo thought.

"The fuck do ya mean he doesn't want anyone ta know!"

Grimmjow's sudden outburst caused Ichigo to nearly leap out of his stool and the man immediately calmed down when he saw Ichigo's reaction. "Look, obviously whatever he saw was fuckin' bad, so if ya don't tell me, I'll hafta beat it outta him myself," Grimmjow growled.

Ichigo watched silently as Grimmjow went quiet at whatever it was that Nel had said. Enticing blue eyes flashed to his own for a long moment and Ichigo could only stare back dumbly as a frown began to slowly form on Grimmjow's lips. A part of Ichigo was slightly bothered by that contemplative frown and he hastily turned away. He still felt Grimmjow's intense stare on the side of his head but did his best to ignore it as he listened to the blue haired man conclude the conversation.

"Why're ya bringin' up ol' shit?" the teal haired man almost whined. "Che. Ya fuckin' suck, Nel... Yeah, yeah I won't say a fuckin' word... Bye."

Grimmjow hung up the phone with a deep growl and tossed the device on the table as he marched back into the kitchen. He immediately headed for the fridge and pulled out a few beers for himself and Ichigo. "Ya look like ya could use a drink," Grimmjow said as he placed a Bud Light in front of Ichigo, trying not to notice his heart constrict at the dejected look on his friend's face. It seemed like the reality of the entire situation was finally starting to bore down on him.

Wordlessly, the orange haired man snatched up the can and chugged down more than half of it in one go. Cerulean eyes widened in both in amazement and worry. Ichigo had never really been a huge drinker, and now here he was, drinking like a sailor who'd been doing it his whole life.

"So what the hell was that phone call about?" said man suddenly asked. "I know you're not one to give up an argument, what changed?"

"Um..." Grimmjow paused as he watched Ichigo chug down the rest of his drink with abandon. "Uh... Nothin' changed really, its jus-"

Ichigo abruptly slammed his empty can of beer onto the island table and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. His cheeks were already beginning to flush a light shade of pink and his eyes were becoming glossy. And that was when Grimmjow remembered; Ichigo was extremely and unaturally lightweight. "You got anything stronger?" the red head asked.

"Uh, yeah...but I don't think you-"

"Whatever it is, just give it to me, please," Ichigo practically begged. Grimmjow could never say no to him, and only sighed as he began to fish through his cabinets for some hard liquor.

Finally finding what he was searching for, he set down a large bottle of clear liquid and a shot glass on the table before turning to face the fridge. "Lemme find ya somethin' ta drink it with," he said offhandedly, knowing that it was probably way too strong for Ichigo. Just as he was reaching for the orange juice, he heard a barely audible clank and whirled around to find Ichigo with his head tossed back and the bottle to his lips. "Ichi, that's straight up vodka!" Grimmjow bellowed.

Ichigo had already gulped down almost half of the bottle's contents by the time he finally set it back down to respond to Grimmjow. "I don' give a flyin' fuck," he slurred.

Shit, the blue haired man cursed inwardly. "Ichi..."

"Ya know, I got a question, Grimm," Ichigo began as he drank a few more gulps of vodka. "How is it that ya diss'pear wit'out any kinda warnin', n' th'n ya suddenly come ta my rescue when I'm 'bout ta jump outta friggin' window? I mean what th' fuck?"

"..."

The red head drank more of the vodka. "Actually, th' better question is, why th' fuck did ya leave in th' firs' fuckin' place?" he snarled bitterly.

"I-"

"D'ya know how fuckin' upset I was when ya left? How fuckin' depressed I became? Even worse was that ev'rywhere I fuckin' looked, somethin' would always remind me of yer stupid ass!"

"Ichi, I'm sor-"

"Don' try n' fuckin' apologize ta me now!" Ichigo bellowed as he launched from his chair, stumbling a bit. "If you were sorry th'n you could've called, wrote a fuckin' letter, did somethin'!"

"Ichigo, I-"

"N' you know what else? You were fuckin'-"

"LET ME FUCKIN' TALK DAMMIT!" Grimmjow roared.

Ichigo jumped and his chocolate eyes widened in shock. Grimmjow hardly ever raised his voice at him and when he did, you knew he was fucking serious.

"Look," he started in a much calmer tone, "I know I fucked up Ichigo, and I'm fuckin' sorry, but if I had come to ya n' said goodbye, would you have let me go?"

"Fuck no," Ichigo answered immediately.

"Exactly. And if I'd called, ya would've asked me for an explanation. One that I wasn't ready ta give," he added softly. "N' didja ever stop ta think that jus' maybe I was hurtin' as much as you were?"

Ichigo was taken aback by this and his mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, unable to respond. Of course he had wondered if he'd ever crossed Grimmjow's mind, but he never really gave thought to whether or not leaving Karakura had hurt the man like it did him. Just as he began to realize this, Grimmjow rounded the island table and made his approach until he was only inches from Ichigo. The blue haired man's expression was unreadable as Ichigo stared up at him with wide doe eyes and flushed cheeks. The smaller man anticipated a scolding, being yelled at, or even a slap to the face (though the chances of that were slim to none). What he did not expect, however, was to be enveloped in strong arms and pressed flush against Grimmjow's warm body.

"You fuckin' dumbass," the larger man mumbled as he buried his face into vibrant orange hair. "Yer an idiot if ya think I didn't fuckin' miss ya like crazy."

Grimmjow didn't exactly mean to say what he had, but he meant what he said and thought that his best friend needed to hear it. The smaller man was completely still in his arms, Grimmjow could hear Ichigo's breath hitch and felt the man's heart pounding in his chest. Slowly, Ichigo's arm lifted, and for a split second, Grimmjow had stopped breathing when he felt warm hands on his sides. Would Ichigo push him away? Did he really hate him that much? When lithe arms began to wrap tightly around his torso, he breathed a huge sigh of relief and tightened his hold on the only person he'd ever loved.

"I jus' wanna know why you lef' Grimm," Ichigo mumbled into his chest.

"We can talk about that when yer sober, Ichi," Grimmjow responded immediately as he reluctantly pulled away from Ichigo. "Fer now, let's jus' have a few drinks, yeah?"

"Hell yeah," Ichigo responded as he once again reached for the bottle of vodka.

XxxxX

Hours had passed of endless drinking and Ichigo babbling about things that Grimmjow could hardly understand. He assumed that the red head was trying to tell him about the years he'd missed of Ichigo's life, those years including much talk about Renji. Although it was all a bit painful for Grimmjow to hear, he knew his best friend needed to vent, if his teary eyes and shuddering voice were any indication. So there they were, sprawled on the couch with Grimmjow working on his fifth can of beer, not even buzzed, while Ichigo sat with a nearly empty bottle of vodka, totally shitfaced.

"Hey, wh't time is it, Grimm?"

Grimmjow checked his watch, "It's ten o'clock. Why?"

"I'm start'n ta *hic* git sleepy, dude," Ichigo mumbled as he rubbed his eyes.

"Then off ta bed ya go," Grimmjow teased as he gently took the bottle of vodka from Ichigo and set it on the table along with his own beer. He clasped a hand around Ichigo's upper arm and effortlessly hefted him off the couch. The red head only took one step before he found himself falling forward, luckily right into Grimmjow's arms.

"I think I mighta drank a lil' too much," he slurred.

"Tch. Ya think?"

Ichigo's head lolled forward and came to rest on Grimmjow's chest. "Grimm, I dunno if I c'n *hic* walk," he groaned.

"Figured that," Grimmjow said as he easily swept Ichigo into his arms bridal style and headed towards the guest room. Ichigo looped an arm around the man's neck, thinking nothing of it in his drunken state, and didn't notice at all the way Grimmjow jolted just slightly at the action. He carried Ichigo down the hall as if he weighed nothing, (which to Grimmjow he practically didn't) and sighed almost silently when the red head buried his face in the crook of his neck. Ichigo also sighed and tried desperately to snuggle closer to the warmth that was purely Grimmjow.

"Let's sleep in yer bed," he mumbled.

Grimmjow didn't miss it, and halted in his tracks uncertainly. He stared down at Ichigo, as if expecting him to exclaim "just kidding!", but it never came. Not knowing at all how to respond, he wordlessly complied with Ichigo's request and bypassed the guest room, heading for his own.

Holding Ichigo one handed, he eased open his bedroom door and trudged inside calmly, though he was anything but. His heart was beginning to race frantically at the thought of having Ichigo sleep in the same bed as him, and it didn't help matters at all when the smaller man lazily lifted his other hand, placing it lightly against Grimmjow's chest. The blue haired man's breath caught in his throat as he hurriedly placed Ichigo on his bed. Even when Grimmjow had set him down, the arm around his neck and the hand on his chest didn't move. Ichigo stared up at him through wide, glassy eyes and his full pink lips formed a slight pout as if someone had given him an extremely difficult math equation.

"What's wrong?" Grimmjow asked, immediately becoming concerned.

_Dammit, stupid question_, he mentally berated himself.

"Grimmjow," Ichigo began almost wistfully. "Why's yer heart beatin' so fas'?"

It was such an innocent question, one that a child would ask, except this was Ichigo. Of course Grimmjow couldn't tell him the real reason, but he couldn't bring himself to lie either, not after all the lies he'd had to tell Ichigo in the past. Instead of answering, he gently removed Ichigo's hands and replied with a curt, "Be right back."

In an instant he was gone and before Ichigo could even miss him, he was back and Ichigo jolted nearly three feet in the air. "How th' fuck do ya keep doin' that?" he asked incredulously.

Grimmjow smirked. "It's called sonido. It's an Arrancar thing," he answered as he shut his bedroom door behind him. "Had ta turn off the lights," he added before Ichigo could ask what he was doing.

The room was dimly lit by the small lamp on Grimmjow's night stand and Ichigo's alcohol hazed mind thought the lighting gave Grimmjow's skin and hair an almost iridescent glow. The blue haired man had changed so much since high school. His stride held more power and his already intense cerulean eyes had somehow become deeper. He had the eyes of someone who'd seen and been through more than anyone could ever imagine in their lifetime. His aura had become god like, one of pure strength and power; someone you just know not to fuck with.

But, Ichigo was drunk, what did he know?

Before he even realized it, his mind began wandering to the reason he was even with Grimmjow right now. The reason why he even knew that this place existed. The reason he'd been feeling like someone had dropped an elephant on his chest.

Renji...

Grimmjow rounded the bed and shut off the lamp, leaving only the clock beside it to illuminate the room. He cautiously crawled into his bed and sunk under the covers, being sure to give Ichigo his space. He lay on his back, breathing deeply and already felt sleep pulling him under when a small, barely audible sniffle made him snap his eyes open and whip his head to his left.

"Ichigo?" Another sniffle, only this one was a bit louder. At this point, Grimmjow turned to face Ichigo and didn't hesitate to reach out and pull the man flush against his body. Trembling arms wrapped around his torso and locked him in a desperate embrace as Ichigo's small sniffles became quiet sobs.

"Y-You 'member in high school, when we firs' met R-Renji?"

"Yeah, I remember," Grimmjow answered quietly as he began rubbing a warm hand up and down Ichigo's back.

"R-Remember how we used ta call 'em pineapple head?" Ichigo mumbled.

"Mhmm."

Ichigo sniffled again and clutched Grimmjow's shirt just a bit tighter. "Ya know h-he grew 'is hair out 'cause o' that?" Grimmjow only squeezed Ichigo harder in response. "He was such a dumbass sometimes," Ichigo chuckled, though it sounded like more of a choked sob.

"I'm so sorry ya had ta lose 'em, Ichi," Grimmjow murmured.

There was silence for a long moment before Ichigo's body began to tremble and Grimmjow could hear the man's teeth gritting together. The red head's control was beginning to slip and he took a few shaky breaths to calm himself. Evidently it wasn't working.

"D-Do you think R-Renji would f-forgive me?" he whispered.

"What?" Grimmjow asked disbelievingly.

"H-He's dead 'c-cause of me. W-Will he forgive me?"

"Ya can't keep blamin' yerself for this, Ichigo," Grimmjow responded firmly. "None of this's yer fuckin' fault, so stop thinkin' it is. Please... Please, Ichi. It's not yer fault."

That was when the damn broke.

Ichigo choked out a loud, gut wrenching sob and clutched Grimmjow like he was the only thing anchoring him to this world. His tears soaked through the material of Grimmjow's thermal and his body shook violently with his every pained cry. At some point he began babbling incoherently and the only words that Grimmjow could pick out were Ichigo's repeated pleas of "I'm so sorry."

Grimmjow's throat burned and the backs of his eyes stung hotly as he tightened his hold on Ichigo. He couldn't stand seeing the man like this and his gut clenched that much more with every sob that racked Ichigo's body. He didn't allow himself to cry though; someone had to be strong for Ichigo, someone had to pull him through this.

It was hours before the red head finally fell unconscious and Grimmjow hadn't moved an inch. His eyes remained glued to the wall and try as he might have, he didn't sleep a fucking wink that night.

* * *

**Whew, that was a bit painful to write. . Review pweez!**


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